As Good As He Once Was
by MotherHeninFlorida
Summary: Frank has seen a lot of things in his life ... and he's about to see more. Some good, some the exact opposite of that. Story has Frank/OC, Calleigh/Eric, as well as the rest of the cast of the show post Season 10. The story, in line with the tv show, has some mature themes and language. Most of the story is rated "T"; however there are some "M" scenes. First in a series.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Ryan Wolfe growled out, "What the hell Pug?! What the hell?! I thought we agreed …"

The young woman on the receiving end of the growl shook her head. "I wasn't at the party. I mean I was at the party but I wasn't AT the party. Felicia …" She suddenly paled and leaned over where she sat on the bench near the hotel's poolside bar and mumbled, "I will not be sick, I will not be sick, I will NOT be sick …"

Ryan was as angry as he ever got in public. He'd also had a bad scare and the woman in front of him was, unfortunately for her, reaping the consequences of being the author of said scare. But Ryan was also worried; Vee had already been through a lot and had started showing signs she suffered PTSD. He sighed and bent down in front of her where she sat.

In a calmer and more gentle tone he told her, "Put your head between your knees …"

"And kiss my butt goodbye? No thanks Cuz. I'm a mess but I'm not … not quite that big a mess. I've seen … seen bodies blown into pieces before. I've seen my buddies in that condition. So many pieces we didn't even have the chance to put them all in the body bags to send them home. But Felicia … that's … that's just not … not right … what was done to her …"

Ryan knew he was compromising his position on the case but his cousin was in pain. She'd been back a year, and a difficult year it had been. Not only was she living with the nightmares she saw on a regular basis while she'd been stationed overseas, she came home to face finding out the guy she'd been going to marry no longer loved her and then being dumped in a very public and humiliating way. She'd dealt with the death of her only remaining sibling … being the one to have to choose to end life support … and the nastiness in the family because of it. She'd faced losing a job in a company that she'd worked at since she was old enough to be hired legally … and a few years before that. She'd left Tampa and come to Miami to try and start over but it seemed whatever dark cloud had been hovering over her since she got off the plane at TPA had followed her south.

Felicia was a girl she'd befriended at her apartment complex when she had first moved to Miami. Vee protected her from a nasty ex-boyfriend that didn't want to be an "ex." They'd somehow become friends immediately, a case of opposites attracting. Felicia was everything that Vee was not. Petite, blonde, drop dead gorgeous, extremely feminine, lots of friends … and in many respects helpless. Only now what was left of the young woman was spread in several different directions.

"Yo Wolfe, you take her statement yet?"

"I can't."

"She giving you a hard time?"

"No, not that. She's my cousin."

Vee glanced up … then had to lean back to look up all the way. "Yeezus, you're a long tall drink aren't ya."

Ryan went back to looking concerned, especially after Frank asked, "She on something?"

It was Vee however that answered before standing up causing both men to back up from her healthy sized six-foot frame. "Naw … I mean no Sir. It just looks like I found a treasure trove of stupid pills. But I'm not drunk or high. My head is scrambled but that is only on occasion and mostly because I got blown up once on take off and then again on landing for good measure." Turning to Ryan she asked, "Any way we can step away from these lights? My stomach is rolling. Any place, just … just not so …"

Vee had tried to take a step and when her knees buckled it took both men to keep her from face planting on the cool deck that surrounded the pool. "Nuts," the woman said with a growl of her own. "I look like a damn idiot."

It was only then that Ryan spotted the blood on the back of the jersey she was wearing. "Pug?!"

"Turn it down Cuz, you're right in my ear."

"Excuse the hell out of me! You didn't say anything about getting hit!"

"I didn't? I thought I told you I came around the corner looking for Felicia 'cause she'd called all panicked and crap because some guy she knew that was a friend of Super Jerk wouldn't take no for an answer. Our apartment is just across the street so I come hoofing over … whoa, I suggest for the sakes of your backs you just let me sit on the ground or I'm gonna squash you and take you down then I really will feel like an ass."

Ryan was getting frustrated and was about to put her in a fireman's carry and take her to the ambulances that were still around front of the hotel when Frank simply swept Vee up in his arms and started carrying her himself.

"Alrighty then," Vee muttered. "Either I'm dreaming – and I've sworn off these kinds of dreams for the next couple of lifetimes – or this guy is no one to freaking mess with."

"What?" he asked startling Vee into realizing she'd actually said what she had been thinking aloud. "Don't like the Prince Charming routine?"

"Well, listen to you all … whatever the hell you call it and stuff. And for your info, Prince Charming is nothing but a fantasy created by the lonely. So, put me down before I break your back. For some reason you haven't exactly noticed I'm no lightweight."

Frank snorted. "Anyone ever told you that you talk too much?"

"Usually the opposite problem. Ryan brings out the … the …"

Frank, as irascible as he was normally, detested seeing women in distress and that is obviously what this young woman was in. "Uh uh … open those eyes Sunshine. C'mon … stay with me."

"Why?" she asked sounding even more out of it than she had up to that point. "Nobody stays with me," she added right before going completely limp in his arms.

Ryan had run ahead to get the paramedics who were following him back. Seeing his cousin completely unconscious made him stumble giving the guys with the stretcher time to get ahead of him. Frank laid her gently on the stretcher then held Ryan back when he started calling, "Pug?! C'mon, don't do this!"

"Mr. Wolfe?"

Frank and Ryan turned at the sound of Horatio Caine's voice. Ryan was pulled in two directions but concern for his cousin won. "Sorry H. I'll explain as soon as I can," he said before running to catch up with the paramedics who were loading the woman into the back of the ambulance.

"Frank?" Horatio asked concerned but still calm.

"Says the girl is his cousin. Apparently she is friends with the vic. Possibly injured in the explosion. Acting goofier than a drunk squirrel before collapsing."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

A few hours later, at the hospital, Ryan stops pacing once he sees his old friend and former co-worker Dr. Alexx Woods.

"Alexx? They said she had to have surgery."

"Is that girl really your cousin?"

Anxiously Ryan answered, "Yes, she's really my cousin … my baby cousin. How is she? Is she all right?"

"Surgery went well. The puncture wound was deeper than expected but nothing vital was hit. The wound track had to be cleaned. She said she pulled whatever it was out Ryan." Alexx looked slightly horrified at the idea. "But the complication is that a previous injury has been aggravated."

"Which one?"

It was at this point Alexx revealed her exasperation. "Which one?! Honey, the fact that you can ask that …"

"Ease up Alexx. Up until a year ago Vee worked as a contractor overseas. She can handle herself. Only … last year they were hired to train … look, you do work with VA services, you've seen what can happen. Vee didn't normally go anywhere near where there was active fighting and she wasn't scheduled to be there that day either. But they were short-handed and one of the trainees turned out to be … not friendly. The aircraft took off … there was a fight … suicide bomber was sucked out the cargo bay door but he still triggered his explosive device causing serious damage. They were able to get the aircraft down but it was a hard landing and a secondary explosive device went off. Vee was one of only a few that walked away … at least mostly under her own power at the time. Then damage control by her superiors … women aren't supposed to be in combat zones … she lost her contract. She gets stateside and the company cuts her completely and this is a place that she'd worked at since she was sixteen." What Ryan didn't say was it was the fact that she'd been dating the owner's son and she was let go to avoid revealing the embarrassment of their son's action.

"Where's home?" Alexx asked.

"Was sometimes Biloxi, sometimes Tampa. It depended on her contract. She closed up her place in Biloxi and decided to move full time to Tampa to live with her brother; his health was deteriorating. He was in a … in a vegetative state. Ronnie … Ronnie and I are … were … the same age. When Vee was twelve her family was hit head on by a drunk driver. Vee and Ronnie were the only ones that survived. At first Ronnie was fine but he developed a systemic blood infection from a fracture that would never heal properly. They managed to stop it from killing him but … anyway, domino effect, organ failure, he wound up first in a coma and then in PVS. Vee took it as hard as you can imagine she would."

"You keep saying he was."

"Yeah. Vee was in Tampa, still recovering from her own wounds when … when Ronnie developed pneumonia that kept shutting down his lungs. After they managed to control the pneumonia they ran some additional tests when some electrical readings came back different than they had been prior to the pneumonia. They discovered that Ronnie's brain was severely atrophied … about the only thing left was the brain stem itself. Vee … she let the medical reality play out as long as she could and then she … when she was sure that there was nothing left of Ronnie … hell, he was so far gone that not even his organs could be harvested … she had them disconnect life support. There hadn't been any brain activity for quite some time; and, as soon as they turned the machines off Ronnie's heartbeat flatlined and his lungs didn't refill. Vee is in the middle of that when some family members on her mom's side … it just got nasty. Real nasty. There was an investigation. When that failed they came after her in civil court and she used up a chunk of her savings defending herself against that. She doesn't feel like she can stay in Tampa another minute and I tell her to come here. She bunks at my place just long enough to find one of her own … and make a friend. Now that friend is dead. And … "

Alexx was the epitome of compassion and gave Ryan a hug. "And now you're even more worried about her."

"Yeah. Yeah I am. Can I see her?"

"She's in recovery. Why don't you go get something to eat and I'll call when she is moved into a room."

Having been the benefactor of Alexx's good sense in the past Ryan nodded and headed off towards the hospital cafeteria. After he'd turned the corner Horatio and Frank stepped into the corridor to face Alexx's less than happy expression.

"Did you get what you were looking for? Couldn't you have simply asked him what her story was?"

"Perhaps," Horatio admitted. "But I would prefer to avoid causing Mr. Wolfe to risk getting into more trouble than he has been in himself in the past."

Frank was quieter than usual. Alexx looked at him, "Frank?"

"I picked her up. She's a big girl … tall. Doesn't look … I mean … hell, the way she was dressed I thought she'd weigh more but it was less than I expected. And if I had to guess there was some problem with a man in the not too distant past as well. She seems pretty …"

"Cynical?"

"No. Beat to hell and disillusioned."

"Whatever it is, you all be careful how you tread. I'm getting the feeling that Ryan … and his 'baby cousin' … are pretty close. And that Ryan is going to be protective of her regardless of her life experience."

Frank was still looking thoughtful when Horatio took a call before saying, "I need to get back to the lab. Frank?"

"I'm gonna see what I can get from Ryan."

Alexx rolled her eyes and said, "Good luck with that. In case I've ever failed to mention it I have a big brother. Do I need to say more?"

Frank snorted and Horatio donned his glasses before headed out into the morning sun of Miami.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Frank found Ryan contemplating congealing eggs on his tray in the hospital cafeteria. "Food is normally good here," he said by way of greeting.

Ryan looked up, his face clearing when he saw who it was. "Yeah. Just not hungry; have a lot on my mind."

Frank sat and then looked at the man that he often kidded as being his favorite dust monkey. "Any of that on your mind have to do with your cousin?"

"Most of it," Ryan admitted. "Frank, Vee can't take much more."

"You want me to listen, I'll listen. You want me to respond you need to give me more than that to work with."

Ryan nodded. "Vee … I know she doesn't look it, and a year ago I would have laughed in your face had you said it … she's fragile."

"Getting blown up will take it out of you."

Ryan looked at Frank and sighed. He knew the man wasn't being a smartass but he wasn't known for being gentle either. "That's only part of it. Look it's a long story. And not your problem. So don't …"

Frank interrupted. "So if it isn't just the injuries she sustained last year what has you getting tied in knots?"

Wanting someone to understand he explained, "Vee has been run over and bullied ever since she was a kid. And not by her parents who were hyper protective. It started even before she was born. See my aunt wasn't supposed to be able to have kids. They thought Ronnie was a blessing that wasn't going to be repeated and he wasn't supposed to be. Everyone is all set for him to be an only … except suddenly my aunt starts getting sick and they figure out what it is and just about the time they are over that shock they find out that she might have something wrong with her. They were all prepared for a special needs kid and then this doctor comes to them with the offer to be in a special program … in exchange for free health care they want to try and fix what is wrong with Vee before she is born and then monitor her to adulthood. And it works … she goes from being a failure to thrive in the womb to suddenly growing … and growing … and growing. Thirty-two weeks they are finally forced to do an emergency c-section because Vee is already estimated to weigh thirteen pounds."

Remembering the birth of his own three children Frank whistled, impressed.

"Yeah. And after she's born, even after they've stopped treatment, she keeps growing. It wasn't a tumor or anything else that they were able to find. She just grew. By the time she is ten years old she is 5'7". And then her growth slows down dramatically. She … er … she hit puberty. The problem is that while she has stopped growing tall now she's filling out and please don't make me explain that."

"I've got two daughters remember. Her Dad must have been going crazy."

"And how. Uncle Lee … he moved the family to Mississippi in hopes of getting away from all the bullying that Vee had to put up with. Didn't work but things were better since they were living near one of our aunts that has this huge family – biological and adopted and they're all different. It gave her the chance to interact with people safely. But still, she's never been very social. They thought she was autistic but she's not … just an extreme introvert at the time. She … look she's always been okay in small group settings, grew out of some of it and was doing better than fine within the small circle of family and friends that Uncle Lee allowed around her. Then the car crash … and Ronnie almost healed until he wasn't and he slid into a coma. Vee got pulled pillar to post for a couple of years after that … she was twelve when the accident happened. Then about the time she is fourteen the ugly duckling turns into a swan. There was this boy … well they were together from the time she was fifteen until about eleven months ago when it ends nasty and mean … with her catching him in the act with a girl his parents would never have approved of except they did when it came out that she was knocked up. That's on top of the injuries Vee sustained while working … and in case I haven't mentioned it, her employers were the jackass's parents. And Ronnie and all that crap with her mom's family."

"Okay, she's had trouble. And I'm not minimizing it so don't grow horns and tail and growl at me. Still, the way she was acting …"

Ryan tried to work the stress out of his shoulders without much success. "I wasn't sure what was going on, I just knew that she didn't need to be alone up in Tampa in the middle of the hell her life had become; she was being kicked at from all sides. I convinced her to move back to Miami. I thought good memories, better job opportunities, and I'd be able to keep an eye on her until she could get back on her feet. What I didn't know was that Vee had started to have nightmares. She tried to hide them from me when she was staying at my place but … but I heard them. I finally got her to see a doctor and … and they say that she may have PTSD. She's in a support group that does group therapy. I don't see that it is helping her much. Being friends with Felicia does … did … a hell of a lot more for her. So did she and I starting to do the family thing … movie nights, meeting for a meal, fishing …"

"Fishing?"

"Yeah. Vee can get the … well … the fidgets and needs to work off energy." He gave a brief grin when Frank looked at him with a raised eyebrow. Ryan could get the fidgets too. "She played a lot of sports during school. Went to the gym. And her job was physically demanding. But after the injuries she's been limited to what she can do. The one thing that she's always loved is fishing; ever since she was a little girl. So sometimes we'll just head out and … fish. Might not catch anything but she's always calmer after a few hours and I can get her to smile and even laugh. But what she did tonight … this is new. I called her doctor and she said that it is probably primarily shock but that she'd check in on her. Vee doesn't care for the woman very much … preferred the male doctor that she saw in the beginning. I think I'll ask Alexx for a referral."

"Ryan …"

"Frank, I know that Vee is going to get investigated. It is SOP. Just … treat her gently. She'll cooperate, it just may seem like she is fighting it. But that's not it at all, she has no problems with law enforcement. Uncle Lee was a cop."

"Say what?"

"Uncle Lee was a cop … so maybe you or Horatio can be the ones to question her. I don't know how she'll react with Calleigh or Natalia – she may shut down – and I'm not sure they'll understand why unless I explain a few things and doing that could compromise the case. And she'll completely clam up around Eric."

"You're gonna have to explain that one. Most of the women want Eric to be the one to question them."

"Yeah well, he'll scare her."

Frank started putting it together. "The guy that just dumped her … take it he was a young, good-looking stud … and maybe occasionally violent."

"He didn't hit her … just intimidated the hell out of her. Stole her self-confidence in private. I suspected a few things over the years but Vee would always deny it or laugh it off. His family was always so great to Vee that … that I told myself I had to be imagining things."

"Take it most of the people who bullied her were along the same line."

"Yeah."

"That still doesn't explain about Calleigh and Natalia. Unless you're saying that they fall into the young and good-looking category."

"Eh … that's part of it but mostly … look … Vee is just … she just had a lot of strong male role models early in life. She got lucky that those strong male role models were also good men who set a good example. Uncle Lee was lucky and crazy in love with his wife and loved being a family man. He and my dad didn't always see eye to eye on things but they tried to stay close and every so often I'd hear him tell Uncle Lee that he got lucky, that not everyone is that lucky." Ryan didn't really notice how much he was giving away but Frank caught it and mentally filed it to think about later. "Uncle Lee and my mom … they were polite to each other for the sake of the family but they didn't really like each other. Mom was convinced that Vee … was unstable. Uncle Lee resented her constant badgering them that Vee needed 'help.' And Vee never has been able to fit into the stereotypical women's role which is something my mother and sisters … being honest even if it isn't my opinion, Vee embarrasses them. And with people constantly ragging on Vee because of her size and the jackass – the ex-fiance – he brought up some crap that she thought she'd left behind like people questioning her real gender."

"Does the jackass ex-fiance have a name?"

"Rob Porter."

Frank was scribbling something down in a notepad when he looked up and said, "That party was being hosted by a company called Porter Contracting."

Ryan sighed. "Yeah."

"And that's why you were so pissed to find her at the party."

"Yeah. But she said Felicia called her."

A pleasantly calm southern drawl said, "Phone records confirm it."

Both men turned to find Calleigh Duquesne had walked up. Both men started to rise but Calleigh rolled her eyes, motioned for them to stay seated, then pulled over a chair for herself.

"Ryan," she said. "I know you want to protect your cousin but …"

"I know. I'm out of it Calleigh, and won't meddle. I just need people to take it easy on Vee."

"Vee stands for … ?"

"Violetta … Violetta Cassandra Wolfe … Vee for short."

Frank said, "You called her Pug last night."

"Nickname. Short for pugnacious. Ronnie and I … we used to call her that because it was the opposite of what she was and it was a gag we made up as kids. Some people take it the wrong way."

Both Frank and Calleigh could hear the protective warning in his tone. Frank, a big brother himself, took the warning in stride. Calleigh decided she'd think about it. The case came first. She just hoped she wouldn't have to steamroll Ryan's cousin to get the answers she needed.

About that time Alexx sent word that Vee had been moved to a room and was awake enough to have limited visitors.

Calleigh stood up. "I need to question her first Ryan."

"But I haven't even …"

"IAB is already involved. They mentioned you might try and coach her."

Ryan snarled something rude and his colleagues worried for a moment he'd refuse but Frank, biting his lip thoughtfully for a second said, "Cal … I'll go up with you. I need to finish my report too."

"Two people might be one too many. Ryan …"

Sighing Ryan said, "No, Frank's right. Get it over with. I'll stay in the waiting room on that floor. Just let me know as soon as you're finished so I can pick up the pieces in case Jackass has inserted himself into the case."

Calleigh blinked and said, "Jackass?"

Frank stood up and told her, "I'll explain on the way up."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

In the elevator after leaving Ryan to speak with Alexx who was introducing him to the doctor who would be his cousin's primary physician, Calleigh looked at Frank and asked, "Okay, what's up?"

Frank sighed. "I'm getting the feeling based on her life story that Ryan's cousin might … look, she's had it rough, particularly the last year. We hadn't gotten around to the why of it but Ryan was worried that she might not have a hell of a lot of rapport with you and Natalia. Seemed to think that Horatio and I would do better with her. And he thinks Eric will scare her."

"Scare her? Eric?!" Calleigh laughed disbelievingly.

Frank shrugged. "Has something to do with her ex-fiance but I'm not sure if that's Ryan being protective or just what. I've never seen him get like this. Could be a big brother thing, could be something more to it. I wanna see how it plays out."

"Does Horatio know?"

"He knows some, I'll fill in the rest. Let's just get this over with."

Sensing something Calleigh asked, "Frank?"

Frank shook his head. "I met her. There's something about her … but I don't want to bias your impressions."

Calleigh agreed and the two of them walked in to find a nurse trying to convince the tall young woman to lay back down. "My cousin is probably looking for me. I need to …"

Frank took charge and the way he did it momentarily took Calleigh (and the nurse) by surprise. "Hey. Hardhead. Get back in the bed and stop being a pain. Ryan is downstairs talking to your doctor. He'll be up here as soon as he's finished."

Vee stopped and stared at the 6'4" male in front of her and all the fight seemed to go out of her. "He knows where I'm at? You're sure?"

"Yeah. And he knows we're up here. So don't give anyone any grief. Ryan is already wiped out. You scared the hell out of him."

Calleigh noted the immediate look of contrite guilt that came over the young woman's face and decided to play along. "Now Frank, you know Ryan doesn't want her worried or upset. He's dealing with the mess."

Immediately the young woman grew concerned. "Oh no. Did I do something? I … I can't remember. I mean I remember everything until Sgt. Tripp started carrying me but after that is fuzzy." Then a shocked look came over her face and she said, "My god … Felicia." The monitors the nurse had re-connected started beeping loudly.

"Hey. Hey, hey, hey. Look at me. Right here," Frank said pointing at his own eyes, forcing her attention on him. "Breathe. Slow and steady. Ryan finds out that we've set you off and he will not be a happy."

"Ra-Ra … geez … I mean Ryan … he can be overprotective. Sorry I'm … I'm being an ass. Not thinking straight. I … I don't want to upset him … or get him in trouble. That's what this is about isn't it?" Calleigh noted she had a white-knuckled grip on the bed rail but was doing what Frank said. The beeping on the machines slowed back to normal. Interesting.

Calleigh gave Frank the lead and he went with it. "No one is in trouble … yet. There's some things that need to be cleared up."

Vee nodded. "Sure there is. Geez. Ya'll have reports and stuff like that. And I'm sure Ryan is hacked that I went over to the party because he'd told me to stay away 'cause Rob or his brothers might be there." She stopped and then pinched the bridge of her nose. "Hang on. Do I need to back up or did Ryan explain about Rob?"

Calleigh interjected, "Let's just say we need independent verification."

"Oh sure. Of course. Sorry." Looking like she wanted to be any place else doing anything else than what she was doing Vee explained, "The party was being put on by Porter Contracting. I'm … I was … associated with that outfit. Rob … Rob Porter … and I dated a long time; started as kid stuff, eventually we were engaged but hadn't set a date. He wasn't ready to marry and I had some responsibilities of my own to get straightened out. About a year ago I … I got injured on the job and … things got complicated. Rob … didn't want … didn't … look, my injuries left some scars … they were still pretty fresh and ugly at the time. Rob had trouble dealing with reality … of the injuries and with my job … which happened to be working for his grandfather's company … Porter Contracting is a subsidiary of Porter International. He … look the break up wasn't mutual and it wasn't … nice … and I didn't handle it as well as I should have. As a result I was forced to leave my employment and then I just moved to try and get a fresh start and for other reasons. And … it's … embarrassing, but his brothers are jerks and they made it out to be about other things so their brother wouldn't get in so much hot water with Mr. Porter Sr. who can be very … particular … when it comes to the family's reputation. People believed them and then my other responsibilities became the priority and I just had to write Rob off so I could deal with other stuff. I haven't talked to Rob since I … caught him with … anyway, I didn't even have a ring to give back but there was this necklace and it was a family heirloom thing. I took it back to his grandmother without saying anything to anyone, trying not to make another scene, and I thought the woman appreciated the consideration. Apparently not so much because she decided to wait for Rob to confess before telling him that I'd done the right thing … I didn't realize he hadn't told his family … and for a little while there people acted like I had stolen the necklace until the Grandparents had given Rob enough rope to hang himself with and then let the truth come out. I heard from the grapevine – people just love to deliver bad news – that Rob got cut off financially and had a serious hate on for me, blaming me for everything. Fine. Whatever. Fast forward to last night … or to yesterday anyway …"

The machines started beeping again but all it took was Frank snapping his fingers and Vee focused on him again and the beeping slowed back down. "Fe … Fe … Felicia was gullible. Somehow or other she always managed to pick the wrong guy."

"Like you," Calleigh said.

"I've only picked one guy. Rob. And he's not really a bad guy. I know Ryan doesn't like him, never has. That's more about Ryan not thinking anyone would be good enough for me than about Rob being a true creep. But … but Rob did make some poor choices and yay me for winding up with another 'Life Sucks' award. Rob is the only guy I've ever dated and I doubt I'll find another that would be able to deal with … with what I am. Way too much trouble to go looking. You can call me damaged if you find the description fits but Felicia really was damaged. At least I had a dad, brother, uncle, and cousins that showed me how men are supposed to act. Felicia … every man in her life has been an abusive jerk. She seemed to attract them like a tractor beam. But she was starting to recognize the signs and try to avoid trouble. She seemed happier and … and more relaxed than since I first met her. Her job didn't exactly make it easy on her though."

"Her job?"

"She was a professional hostess. And no, not that kind of hostess. The company she works … worked for is real strict about that sort of thing but at the same time she is … was …expected to mingle and jingle and make the men tingle if you know what I mean."

Frank nodded. "Got it."

"I don't talk much about … Rob. Not even to Felicia. It's just … embarrassing."

Called said, "You're doing fine with us."

"Yeah well, you're cops doing your job; I have to talk to you. Plus you're Ra … you're Ryan's co-workers and I don't want to embarrass him by acting anymore of an idiot than I already have. It has been a year and … and eventually you just need to get some perspective on things. Rob and I might have worked it out but it collapse happened too fast and neither one of us really tried to even prop it up until we could fix what was wrong. I'm not blaming anyone else really, we both screwed up. Bottom line is I had to pull my big girl pants up and deal with it."

Frank and Calleigh both could tell that that was a bit of a bluff but they let her have it.

Frank said, "Fine. So you're over your ex. There must have been something else if Ryan warned you away from the party."

"First off, until a couple of days ago Felicia and I hadn't put two and two together and realized that her job was with my ex-fiance's grandparents' company. It shook me up a little and I called Ryan who knows the whole stupid story because he had to drag me out of the hole I fell in after … after my brother died."

"Those one of the responsibilities that you mentioned earlier?"

"That pretty much was the biggie. Then there is some legal stuff that includes some properties that the lawyers that took care of my parents' estate had invested in so there would be a stream of income to take care of Ronnie with in case his medical trust got used up. Boxing up estate junk and dealing with other family things. The day I turn twenty-five I become responsible for the whole kit and caboodle and the lawyer that handles things is pushing like mad for me to hurry up because he plans to retire and wants it off his plate."

"That must be nice," Calleigh said with a conspiratorial smile.

Vee grumped, "I'd rather go fishing." Sighing she added, "Ryan thought Rob was after the money in the trust. I don't know what to think anymore. Some of the things he said after we broke up …"

"I thought you didn't speak to him."

"Not directly … through the lawyers his family threw at me. One of the reasons why Ryan was kinda … er … intense about me staying away from the party was because they'd gotten an injunction against me because … geez I sound like an idiot. Look, the night that I caught Rob and … the person he was with … I hit him. Really shredded his man card because there were other people that witnessed it … and they laughed at him."

Trying to act understanding Calleigh said, "Well you were in shock, finding him with another girl and all."

Vee rolled her eyes. "I said I was stupid, not completely without some pride. I was refusing to give the … the girl the fight she wanted. She was staking her claim and wanted everyone to know I was out of the picture and apparently expected me to concede right there and then. But I guess Rob had started to worry about consequences and the scene that was being made and how he was going to spin the situation to his family and the crowd they move in. We were supposed to be engaged after all. I don't even think he thought about what he was doing. He just reached out and grabbed the back of my shirt when I wouldn't stop and talk to him. But I was still hurt … he grabbed skin with the shirt and tore one of the stitches that I still had … and … and I reacted badly. I … er … slugged him and must have caught him in just the right place because it was a TKO and it took him a while to come around. People made it out to be more than it was … made me out to be some kind of freak. Rob, his family, the girl all got injunctions against me … even internet injunctions. They could yak their heads off and make me look like a monster but I couldn't say jack back."

Calleigh said, "You know it is unlikely a Mississippi injunction would have been enforced here in Florida."

"You don't know Rob's family. Plus Ryan thinks I still have a thing for Rob because I don't want to date."

"Do you?"

"Have a thing for Rob? Not really. Maybe for the Rob that he used to be but not for the man he has turned into. Plus he's married now. And maybe the Rob I thought he used to be wasn't real if he could do the things he's done and say the things he's said. Who knows? I've just taken myself off the market because obviously my prognosticating skills are nonexistent."

Frank decided to skip the rest of the touchy-feely crap and question Vee about the party. "So you get a phone call from your friend Felicia who was working the party."

"Yeah, I wish I had gotten it sooner."

"You mean you wished she had called sooner."

"No I mean I wish I had gotten it sooner. I had gone to the apartment complex's gym facility. It doesn't have lockers so you have to leave your phone and everything either in your car or apartment when you go. I have my car in storage until I finish cleaning the engine and some other delayed maintenance so I was hoofing it. It wasn't until I got back to the apartment and out of the shower that thought to look at my phone and check my voice mail. As soon as I got her message I called Ryan and told him that I was going to go over and pick Felicia up. He wasn't happy, wanted me to wait, and maybe I should have but … you had to know Felicia. I could hear how scared she was. Her ex is … he's a bad dude with connections to more bad dues and she said this guy was a friend of his and wasn't taking no for an answer. I threw on my boots and ran across the street and was coming around the corner into the pool area when the explosion happened."

"Did she give a name?"

"Of the creep hitting on her? No. Which means he was probably a client or someone pretty important at the party or hotel. Felicia made good money because she knew how to keep her mouth shut. Bad habit though when it comes to dealing with bad men."

Both Frank and Calleigh noted that information and decided to prioritize cross-referencing names from previous parties to see if anything stood out.

Calleigh asked, "Did you happen to see the explosion?"

"Yeah. I was looking for Felicia and got taken off my feet when the pool cabana blew … it was one of those little private ones that look like a miniature Roman temple to go with the whole Italian theme of the hotel. I've been blown up a couple of times; you kinda get a feel for the damage explosions can cause. Plus blowing someone my size off my feet … we weren't talking a few M-80s going pop, but it was weird how there wasn't really any flames." Vee looked like she was examining her memories. "Yeah, I … I think the only actual flames I saw came from the tiki torches that lit the walkways. Pretty sure anyway."

"What happened next," Calleigh prompted.

Vee startled like she'd forgotten the other woman was there. She swallowed hard then answered, "I manage to get to my feet, help a few more people up, then started getting worried about Felicia because I can't find her and I know she's gonna be freaking out. Some guy runs out of from between these two big sea grape bushes and he's puking. That's always a bad sign when someone is so freaked they are running and puking at the same time. And God don't I wish I hadn't gone over to see what freaked him out."

It was obvious that Vee was running out of steam. Frank asks a few more questions about what she saw and by the time he is finished he feels like he's pulling the wings off of a butterfly. "You stay put. I'm sure Ryan will be right here."

"Yes Sir," Vee responds quietly looking off towards the room's window without really seeing anything but the last time she saw her friend … and the condition the body had been in.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Calleigh and Frank leave the room just in time to see Ryan getting off of the elevator. He spots them and rushes over. "How is she?"

Frank answers, "Beat to hell. Better than she was last night however."

Ryan seems relieved. "Maybe the doc is right, it was just shock."

Cautiously Calleigh asked, "Ryan? She mentioned that you never liked her fiancé. Can I ask why? I met him while interviewing guests at the hotel."

"I knew that son of a bitch would …" He wound up growling and no one was able to understand him.

"Ryan, I need you to focus," she said trying to calm him.

Ryan briefly closed his eyes and sighed. "Rob is a jock, a gym rat, a spoiled rich boy who gets through life with his looks and his parents' money. Vee deserved someone better than that. Someone that wouldn't constantly make her feel like he was doing her a damn favor by being with her. The gifts he gave her? It was sending her to etiquette classes, getting her into these spas that dressed her up like some damn doll, hell … he wanted to send her to a plastic surgeon but thankfully Vee drew the line at that. And in return Rob expected her undying gratitude. You want to know what her response was to those so-called gifts? She thought he was being nice, helping her get along in his world. Like hell he was. The guy is an arrogant asshole. There's not a damn thing wrong with Vee yet he treated her like she just naturally fell short of every measurement and he was the god that was going to raise her above it all. Yet he was the one that didn't have the balls to be faithful. He knocked up some trashy piece they'd both known since high school … and apparently that one wasn't the first one he'd been keeping company with while she was overseas working. And Vee still can't be angry at anyone but herself for not seeing it. The bastard. I hope this chick he knocked up takes him for everything he is worth … which isn't much now that his family has cut the purse strings."

"Are you sure of this or is this your anger talking?"

"When Ronnie died …" Ryan tried to hide how heartbroken he was but the others saw it. "A couple of Vee's relatives on her mom's side had been his caregivers when Vee was out of the country or on some contract that didn't let her see him daily. They became dependent on the income she'd been giving them in exchange for Ronnie's care. When … when Ronnie died the income stopped and for some reason they thought they were due some kind of inheritance so they sued Ronnie's estate thinking that the medical trust that was created from the insurance money they received after the accident would have millions in there. Well it didn't, and in fact was nearly used up by his last illness. They then tried to say that Vee had squandered the money in the fund and brought in all kinds of documentation to try and prove she was a liar, among many other things. Some of that documentation is based on Vee's relationship with Rob and her employment with Porter International. Rob cooperated because he wanted a piece of the action with regard to the trusts. You can either use my copies that I got of the case file and depositions, or I can give you the name of the lawyer that Vee used."

Frank said, "The lawyer. Right now there's a girl down the hall worried that her big cousin is mad at her for making a mess."

"What?! Dammit. Who put that idea into her head?" he growled right before heading straight for Vee's room.

Calleigh looked thoughtful and said, "Protective."

"Big brothers are like that," Frank said like he didn't have a problem with it. "Especially if they feel guilty they've missed something."

"Spoken like you are one."

"Yeah," Frank said. "Girl definitely needs one if only half of what we've been told proves to be true. Did that Porter guy give you any reason for him to be at the company party if he has been cut off."

"He wasn't actually at the party according to his wife … a fact that she was quite angry about. She wanted to go but he insisted that they stay in their room … with the baby … because Robbie is too cheap to hire a babysitter, much less a nanny like he promised. Have you ever heard of anything so unfair in your life? Having to take care of a baby is hard and she deserves a chance to have a good time on other people's dimes."

Frank said dryly at Calleigh's likely all too accurate imitation of the wife, "I could probably name a few. Take it the baby momma is a hot mess and not happy with how things are going."

"It certainly makes Rob Porter look more sympathetic … but if Ryan is correct perhaps he is merely getting his just desserts."

# # # # # # # # # #

"Ra-Ra … be honest, did I make a mess for you?"

His team had never seen this side of Ryan. In fact very few people ever got to see this side of him. "Vee, you need to stop assuming the worst. None of this is your fault."

"In other words, yes there is a mess but you aren't going to let me accept any responsibility for it."

"There's a mess because there was an explosion. There's a mess because Felicia was found … murdered. There's a mess because of the complication with Rob and his family. But none of that is your fault. It just is the way things are."

"It doesn't feel that way."

"I know Pug, but it … it isn't … constructive for you to … er …"

"Wallow in it?" the young woman asked before trying to take a more active role in pulling herself together. "I hate these stupid pain meds. What have they got me on?"

"Whatever they gave you for the surgery … and …" Ryan looked at her chart. "Looks like they want you to take a Percocet in about a half hour."

"No thanks. I'm tired of feeling as loopy as a pig drunk on sour mash."

Ryan rolled his eyes. "You don't need to lay it on that thick with me."

Vee chuckled then winced. "Fine. But you know what I mean." After a brief pause she said, "Ryan I don't want someone automatically being investigated because of me either."

"I can't control how the case flows. I'm recused because of my connection to you."

"You know what I mean. You don't like the Porters. You especially don't like Rob. But can you honestly see him … doing what was done to Felicia?"

"Look, whatever trouble Rob has gotten himself into, that's his problem. You need to stop covering for him."

"I'm not covering for him. And besides, you know he faints at the sight of blood. It is why his father didn't want him doing contract work … was too afraid he'd embarrass the family."

Ryan sighed. "Actually I had forgotten that."

"How could you forget something like that?"

"Because I think about the son of a bitch as little as possible, especially now that I don't have to deal with him becoming a member of the family. Let's talk of something else, like how are you feeling?"

Vee decided it was easier to go along with the change of subject than beat a dead horse. Ryan would just never lose his prejudice against Rob.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Lt. Horatio Caine was waiting for Calleigh and Frank when they returned to the precinct.

"Horatio!" Calleigh said with a smile when she spotted him. Frank merely grunted a greeting, his mind seeming to be elsewhere.

"Good news … the case has been closed."

At that Frank and Calleigh both blinked and focused on Horatio. Calleigh said, "This I gotta hear."

"A man's girlfriend caught him getting rid of bloody clothes. She called the cops, blood is a match to our vic, Felicia Waters. He was paid by Ms. Water's ex to scare her … but the ex showed up as well and things got out of hand. They were trying to dismember her body before taking it out in the Gulf and getting rid of the remains when the cabana blew."

"Ryan's cousin mentioned seeing a man come running out of the bushes, vomiting."

"That would have been one of the men, yes. And since she would have recognized the ex-boyfriend it was likely the ex's friend. The reports are being finished for the prosecutor now. How are Ryan and his cousin?"

"Ryan is like a dog with his favorite bone," Calleigh said.

Horatio saw Frank give Calleigh a look before saying, "Protective."

"And the young woman?"

Frank answered before Calleigh and said, "Upset but trying to do as asked."

"She certainly listened to you," Calleigh said.

"She's barely more than a kid," he grumped. "She would have responded the same to Horatio. Look, I've got my own report to write. Call me if you need me."

"Well, well, well," Calleigh said with a sweet smile as Frank hurried away.

Horatio looked at Calleigh and asked, "Is there a problem?"

"Nope," Calleigh answered and then told her boss how easily Frank handled Ryan's cousin. "I wonder what Ryan would have made of it?"

"Hmm," was the only thing Horatio responded before saying, "We also have the answer to the exploding cabana."

"What did cause the explosion if it wasn't to hide the murder?"

Horatio saw Frank talking to Eric Delko and assumed he'd be getting the explanation that way … but he'd swing by the man's desk himself just to be sure. And to find out if there was going to be a problem with Ryan's cousin.

Turning back to Calleigh he said, "Dry ice explosion. They stored the dry ice for the fog machines in the ballroom in a cooler in the cabana. The latch on the cooler failed due to extreme pressure. The ER staff noted unusual burns on some of the people transported to the hospital and the burns turned out to be frostbite. Eric and Walter pieced together a couple of interesting pieces of shrapnel they found embedded in some nearby trees. Backtracking that we learned from the manager that staff put the dry ice outside because it was part of some rented items brought in from outside the hotel."

"Was it intentional or an accident?"

"For now it looks like unintentional mishandling by the hotel staff. Normally the hotel doesn't allow fog machines because they've had some slip-and-fall incidences from them; however, the hosting company paid extra and carries their own liability insurance. With the murder solved the remainder of the investigation will be done by the insurance company but I've asked to be kept apprised of any developments."

"Well, that certainly is going to complicate any insurance claims."

"Not our problem Calleigh. Let's just get this case wrapped up. Don't you have a recital to go to tonight?"

Amazed at the Horatio's ability to keep everyone's private as well as professional schedules in his head she grinned, "I do. Austin and Patty are both in a play at their school. Oh my gosh, I just remembered. I'm supposed to bring cookies, cupcakes, or brownies. Better add a trip to the bakery to my to do list."

Horatio grinned at how happy Calleigh sounded. Calleigh may have started off adopting the two children for their benefit but it appeared that it was benefitting Calleigh as well. After Calleigh left to go complete her share of the paperwork Horatio went to find Frank, finally spotting him as he returned to his desk with a tall cup of what was undoubtedly coffee.

"Frank."

"Got the story of the explosion from Delko. I'll finish up the report before I leave for the day."

"That's fine. What I actually stopped by for was to ask your impression of how Ryan handled being asked to stay off the case."

"Hmph. Given his high level of concern for his cousin better than I expected. He explained some of her history, asked if it could be you or I that questioned her, definitely didn't want Eric questioning her."

"Hmmm, I believe I understand why he wouldn't want Eric questioning her."

"Young, good-looking guy …"

"Actually the Porter brothers are all similar in coloring and build to Eric … their mother is even Hispanic, though Honduran rather than Cuban. Calleigh didn't mention it?"

"No."

"Alexx says that the young woman has an extensive array of previous injuries."

"Ryan says she played sports and both the girl and Ryan said she suffered injuries during an explosion."

"Yes. And your impression of her?"

"My impression? Why? The case is over."

"Let's just say I'm … curious. Mr. Wolfe isn't known for being able to hide when his personal life gets complicated. And as transparent as he sometimes is, this is the first I've heard of there even being a cousin much less one that he was temporary guardian of."

"Temporary guardian? I hadn't heard that."

"It came up during the interview with the Porter brothers. They seemed worried that Mr. Wolfe would set the police against them."

"Well he sure don't have a high opinion of them."

"Understandable to some extent. What about the cousin?"

Frank sighed. "If you met the girl I bet you'd understand better."

"In what way?"

"She's not quite twenty-five. She's been beat to hell both figuratively and literally. She obviously is … attached to Ryan. And Ryan apparently was close with her brother … and close enough with her to have disliked the ex-fiance for quite some time. She lived with Ryan for at least a few weeks and you know how he is about his personal space. Add in your intel that he was her guardian as a kid, at least for some period of time. I don't know Horatio, I'd be more suspicious if she didn't have squirrels in the attic. And while she wasn't as out of it as she was right after the explosion, she is definitely different."

"In what way?"

"Er …"

"Frank?"

"Look, she's … she's just … well my observation is that she's definitely not like your modern girl … er .. woman. Pretty damn old-fashioned, on the surface anyway. At the same time she was a private contractor in foreign areas that aren't known for their peace and tranquility. All that in an unusual physical package that only starts with the fact she is six feet tall." Looking uncomfortable Frank added, "She's got what my grandmother called the eyes of a dreamer … in her case a sad dreamer. I think Ryan isn't exaggerating about her being fragile, and not just physically."

"She really made an impression."

"Yeah, yeah she did." Horatio understood that to mean that Frank didn't really appreciate that fact.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

"Ra-Ra, knock it off already will ya? I just went fishing is all."

"Fishing. Alone. At night. Dammit Pug this isn't Bug-Tussle, Mississippi where everyone knows you and you have connections. This isn't even Tampa. This is Miami, Florida where there are over thirty thousand violent crimes a year … and that's just the ones that are reported."

"It wasn't night, it was early morning. I'm sorry I worried you. But honestly, I need to start acting less like a head case and more like I can handle my own crap. However, if it bothers you that much I won't go fishing in the dark by myself again."

"I'm beginning to wonder if I should have gotten that referral to that new counseling group."

"Don't be that way Ryan. Just because I'm getting my head back in the game doesn't mean that I don't still value your opinion and advice. In fact, the counselor is saying the same thing you've been telling me for months. Essentially, I've got to stop wallowing in what happened in the past and I need to figure out where I'm headed in the future, to start taking steps to ensure I have a future. Time to stop waiting on a resolution that may never come … the non-resolution actually is the resolution. And just to prove I've decided to stick to moving forward, I finished and submitted the next manuscript. No more excuses not to after you helped with the editing."

That stopped Ryan and he slowly grinned. "That's fantastic. You know people were begging for the next installment."

"I guess," the young woman said, obviously embarrassed. "Amazon has already sent me notice of over a dozen purchases."

"See?! And did you take it out of the ninety-nine cents pricing?"

"Amazon did … or they suggested I do it. Bigger percentage of sale for them anyway."

"And a growing nest egg for you."

Vee shrugged. "It's a hobby. I still need to get a better job."

"Yes you do. And it better not be as another bouncer. The idea of my cousin …"

"Don't be a snob," she said smiling.

"I'm not being a snob. I'm worried about you. And that damn Wonder Woman costume you have to wear …" Ryan shuddered theatrically.

"Wonder Woman was last week. This week is Super Girl. Gil wanted me to dress up as Cat Woman but I talked him out of it."

"Thank God," Ryan muttered. "So … did you catch anything?"

"Nothing big enough to keep. Have you ever been crabbing?"

Ryan sighed. "Not since college. I take it you want to try."

"Maybe. I'd probably scare all the crabs away before I could net any of them." The young woman stopped and winced waiting for Ryan to call her on her statement.

Instead he surprised her. "Well you haven't done that in a while. Maybe that doc isn't so bad after all. You really need to stop cutting yourself down. You are a tall, beautiful woman. Eventually some guy will have the sense to see it and do what it takes to show you he appreciates it. And at the risk of sounding even sappier, he'll cherish you like you need and deserve." He stopped and after they both dealt with their embarrassment he said, "Look, actually I came by to ask a favor."

"Anything," Vee said automatically.

"You haven't heard what it is yet."

"Doesn't matter. We're family. We take care of each other."

This time it was Ryan's turn to smile. Ryan had a better relationship with Vee than he did with the rest of his immediate family who all considered him a screw up or a failure of some degree due to some of his past transgressions. They weren't quite as harsh as they had been but they weren't exactly supportive either. "Uh … I have to go to a party. Work related so I can't get out of it."

"Oh boy. The cougar still hinting that she would like to get together?"

"Yeah," Ryan admitted. "I swear I never encouraged her or … or …"

"Relax. I believe you. Some people just can't take 'no' gracefully. Makes it worse that she's a secretary for an assistant DA. But why don't you ask Lily? I thought you and she were starting to hit it off?"

"Yeah … until her mom heard about my screw ups through office gossip."

Sympathetic yet realistic Vee said, "That sucks. People can be so judgmental."

"Is that directed at me because I ran Rob off?"

Vee shook her head remembering how Ryan had stopped by her apartment only to find her ex-fiance there looking for sympathy. "No. You never cared for Rob but you didn't force me to stop seeing him and there was a time there that you could have with the full force of the law behind it. As for last week? I called you remember? Rob has dug his hole. He just doesn't want to hear that I'm not the one with the ladder to get him out."

"That's not what he is after."

"Relax Ryan, I didn't fall for any of it no matter what it was about."

"Good. And he went back to Biloxi finally."

Giving Ryan a suspicious look she said, "You didn't."

"Call in a few favors? Yeah I did. He's married. He has a kid. He and his family took legal action against you. Yeah, I'm gonna keep an eye on him if he is in my territory."

"Your territory? Never mind. I swear you are such a guy." But the way Vee said it made it obvious that she didn't have a problem with it. "So … back to the party thing."

"It's a fundraiser. I only signed up to try and get on Lily's good side but I can't get out of it now. Natalia …"

"Boa Vista? The lady you work with?"

"Yeah, her. She's helping with it too. Grief from her I don't need."

"Is she the one that gossiped?"

"No. But I suspect she was asked and she won't lie … for anyone. So … I have two tickets and no date. Wanna help a cousin out?"

"Sure. Why not? I take it my work gear won't cut it for the dress code."

Ryan made another face. "It's … er … formal."

Vee gave him a look and said, "You are definitely going to owe me."

"Big time," he agreed.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Ryan was running late. He hated running late, it always made him anxious. Plus he didn't want to give his baby cousin any reason to think he regretted asking her to accompany him to the fundraising banquet. He jumped out of the car in his rented tux and rushed up to Vee's apartment door. He didn't even have to knock since she'd been watching for him.

"Wow," Ryan said after getting a good look at Vee.

"Too much?"

"No. Definitely not. But … uh …"

Knowing Ryan was concerned about her finances she cut him off with, "I didn't spend any money on it … or not much; just a dry cleaning bill. Gil let me scrounge through the old costume pieces in the back of the club. I know it is kind of retro but it covers all the vitals top, bottom, fore, and aft. The shoes I already had. I … I won't embarrass you will I?"

"Will you stop that?" Ryan asked as they walked back to his car. "I'm the one that had to ask my cousin to the party 'cause I couldn't get a date."

"Yeah right. You could have gotten a date. And no I'm not just talking about the cougar. Lily for one since she changed her mind."

"No. I'd already asked you."

"I would have understood."

"Well I wouldn't have. Lily … the only reason she asked if I was going was because her original date fell through. I … I can't deal with that kind of thing anymore. I don't mind proving myself … but I'm getting tired of having to prove myself over and over and it never being enough."

"But you like Lily."

"Yeah," Ryan said sadly. "But I already get the feeling I'll never measure up. After a while you just have to admit that, no matter how much you like someone, that you need to let go and move on or it is going to mess with your head."

Vee was uncomfortably aware of how true that was and they both fell silent thinking of other people and situations. Ryan had just gotten on the interstate when his phone gave a distinctive ring. He answered and then said, "Give me fifteen, I'm already on the interstate." Turning to Vee he said, "I gotta take this."

"Stop worrying already and just go. I know how to sit in the car like a good girl," she said with a grin. "Or I can catch a bus or something."

"No bus. Besides the scene is outside any routes. Let's see how it goes. You sure you don't mind?"

Vee just rolled her eyes and then sat back to watch her cousin psych himself up to do his job. It was interesting watching him transform from the gentle, fun-loving protector into the professional crime scene investigator he was on the job. It didn't look painful exactly but it made her aware that maybe Ryan might need his down time with her as much as she needed hers with him.

They pulled into a typical Miami middle class subdivision complete with Spanish tile roofs and beige stucco and she watched him get out and head into the crowd surrounding the yellow crime scene tape. Not wanting to draw attention to herself she slid the seat back as far as it would go – not much further considering she'd already adjusted it to address her long legs – and made sure that she stayed out of the glare of the street lamps.

"Good thing I brought the bigger purse," she thought. She could have just brought the little dinky thing barely big enough for her wallet but she'd become too attached to the prepare-for-anything mentality she'd had to use as a contractor. Vee pulled out a small tablet and decided to go over the latest manuscript. It is amazing that no matter how many times she read over it there was always grammar that needed correcting, formatting that needed adjusting, and writing that needed tweaking. She'd never admit it but her dream was to one day be able to gain most of her income from writing but she was realistic enough to know that wasn't happening any time soon.

Vee was so focused on what she was doing she nearly came out of her skin when there was a hard tap on the car's passenger window. She relaxed slightly when she saw it was Ryan's co-worker Frank Tripp.

Rolling down the window Vee didn't even get to offer a greeting, "What in the hell are you doing out here?"

"Uh … Ryan got called in. He's in there somewhere," she said pointing vaguely in the direction of the crime scene tape.

"I know where he is, saw him when he arrived. Are you saying you've been sitting out here for an hour?!"

"Uh … I guess? Haven't been keeping track of time. Look, just tell me what I'm doing wrong and I'll fix it."

Frank opened his mouth then closed it. "Nuthin'," he growled. "But Ryan should have more sense than to just leave you out here like this. These things take hours."

"I figured. Look, Ryan explained but a cop has to do what a cop has to do. That's the job. And he won't let me catch a bus. As soon as he gets to where he can focus on me then we'll work it out. For now he needs to pay attention to the priority."

Frank just stared at the young woman before saying, "And you have no problem with that?"

"No. Why should I?" she asked honestly confused.

Frank continued to stare tight lipped and then shook his head. "Stay put. I'll bring you a bottle of water or something."

"Got one," she said holding it up. "Had one in my purse and even if I didn't Ryan keeps a case of water in his car. And before you start I have peanuts, crackers, and Skittles in my purse so Long Tall Sally here isn't going to perish of hunger. But … um … thanks. For being nice I mean. And … geez … I should have said thank you before now. Carrying me wasn't exactly light work and … looking back … you ran interference so I would have to deal with … uh … the blonde woman … Ms. Duquesne."

Frank didn't know what to make of Ryan's cousin. Something about her just got under his skin. When he got the look on his face that he had at that moment most people hunted up someplace else to be but Vee simply took it, accepted it, and waited for the next "hit." That only irritated Frank more. Where was the girl's fight? Survival instinct? He was no one to her. Why was she listening to him in the first place?

"One, I didn't run interference. Calleigh Duquesne doesn't need me to run interference for her. Two, drop it with the helpless routine … that's the last thing you should be. And three, don't try and manipulate me with those doe eyes and 'Long Tall Sally' comments. It won't work."

Vee's mouth dropped open and then her face got very red reflecting her embarrassment. "Uh … not trying … um … sorry. Sorry." Vee's reaction made Frank just that much more irritated.

"Stay put. Just … just stay put," he said before turning and heading back to the crime scene.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

"Wolfe!"

"Yeah?" Ryan responded still more focused on the crime scene than on Frank Tripp's snarl.

"Your cousin is sitting out in your car."

"Yeah I know. I …" Ryan's brain seemed to snap hard into a different gear. "Dammit." He looked at his watch and sighed. "I've got at least another hour here. Walter is hung up in traffic and everyone else is already on a scene." Looking frustrated and starting to get jittery Ryan looked at Frank and asked, "Can you get someone to see if she needs anything and let her know I'm still tied up? No way are we making the banquet."

"Banquet."

Ryan snorted. "I don't usually wear a tux to work. It's that thing Natalia is helping with. Dammit, dammit, dammit. She's gotta be starving too. Frank …"

"How far?"

"How far what?"

"Is that monkey suit too tight? To her apartment."

"Too far. No way in hell is she taking a bus or taxi this time of night in that outfit she has on. Not through the areas they'd be driving through."

"Fine. Then you can pick her up at the station."

"What? Why?"

"Because that's where she is going to be when you come in to drop off the evidence. We'll swing by and grab something to eat."

Ryan just stared at Frank thinking something wasn't computing but then again … "I'll owe you," Ryan said gratefully.

Frank just grunted then said, "Text her or I doubt she'll open the window this time."

"This time?"

"I stopped because I saw movement in your car. She didn't even have the window cracked. If she'd been a mutt …"

"Hey."

"You know what I mean. Just tell her it is alright to come with me. She's the damn most literal little thing."

Now Ryan was really wondering what was going on. Not even Uncle Lee had ever called Vee a "little thing," and certainly not in the tone Frank was using. But there was the victim and the crime scene to deal with.

He pulled his phone and texted his cousin and Frank turned and left without another word.

# # # # # # # # # #

"You don't need to do this. Really. I don't know what Ryan said but …"

"He said to ride with me to the station. Correct?"

"Well … yeah … but …"

"And he didn't ask, I offered. Hurry up with that seat belt."

Vee did as ordered and then relaxed when Frank focused his concentration on getting out of the crowded streets of the subdivision and onto the interstate. She relaxed further when she realized how good a driver he was. Not even Ryan drove this smoothly though she'd never tell him that, especially not since he is the one that taught her to drive.

There was silence for another ten minutes then Frank said, "Next time throw something at me."

"Excuse me?"

"You shouldn't just take it when some guy growls at you like I did."

"Oh … um … I'm … I'm not fragile if that is what Ryan told you. Maybe I was … a few months ago I mean … but I'm on the mend and I'm not … a … a child no matter how many times or how loud he calls me his baby cousin. And even Ryan was worried about taking me to the crime scene but extenuating circumstances and all that. I was where I shouldn't have been and …"

"That's not why I did it."

"Uh … it isn't?"

"No. You were starting to draw attention."

"I … I was? What was I doing wrong?"

"Nothing."

"Oh. Uh … sorry … not registering anywhere on the logic scale. If I wasn't doing anything wrong how was I drawing attention?"

"Men were staring."

"Why?"

Frank looked over at her thinking she had to be pulling his leg but saw she honestly just didn't get it.

"Ryan ever said anything about an ulcer?"

Trying to keep up with the change in topic Vee nodded, "Er … a few times."

"Happen more often when you two are out?"

"Maybe. I guess. Are you trying to be nice and tell me that I'm causing problems for Ryan? Because if you are just be specific. I've been worried that somehow …"

"No girl, that's not what I mean. I'm saying there were men. Staring at you."

"I know. You said that already."

"Good lord," Frank said and finally gave a tired chuckle. "Let's back up. My name is Frank Tripp and I have been out of this game for way too damn long and should be kicked in the head for what I am currently thinking."

"Uh …"

"You look very nice tonight. There were other men that noticed it too. Them noticing and staring did not make Frank a happy camper and he commenced acting like an ass to cover how much he didn't like it. Got it?"

It took a moment but Vee said, "Thank you … for the compliment. And … and thank you for … for explaining. I've never been in the game so … the rest of it … um … let's just forget about that part."

"You're probably used to smooth talkers."

"Not really," Vee said and Frank could have kicked himself again because it was obvious that Vee was thinking depressing thoughts.

"Look, I need to grab a bite of something before we head into the station."

"Oh. Oh sure. Of course."

"There's this place I know. Good food. Fast service. Cop friendly."

"Those are the best," Vee said trying to find a smile.

Frank pulled into a parking lot with several food trucks. There was a line at all of them but Frank walked up to one and handed a bill in exchange for several Styrofoam containers already bagged up. It was obvious, even from a distance, that Frank was a frequent customer as several of the people were greeting him good-naturedly. Frank got back in the car and pulled out after putting the food in the rear floor board.

Vee was struggling to keep the spit in her mouth. The food smelled so good making the crackers, peanuts, and candy in her purse seem a lot less appealing than it had a few moments earlier. It didn't take long for them to reach the station and Vee just followed Frank into the building. He liked not having to tell her to keep up or even worry that she would. He also liked that she didn't fuss about him opening doors or pushing the elevator buttons. No competition with him at all.

When they got off the elevator Vee looked for the waiting area that Ryan had mentioned but Frank said, "Uh uh." Then indicated she was to follow him … winding up in a break room where two people already sat.

Eric Delko and Walter Simmons stared for a moment before catching the glare that Frank was throwing their way. The glare nearly turned into a growl when Walter stepped forward with a smile and introduced himself. Vee glanced at Frank, not knowing quite how to play the scene out.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

"Vee … you've met Walter Simmons. This is Eric Delko. You ready to eat?"

Vee just blinked at Frank but before she can respond he pulls out a chair and pushes it against the back of her legs forcing her to sit or be taken off her feet and then sits down himself, effectively blocking her in, but also blocking the other men's access to her. The other two men get a page on their phone and rush off before they can satisfy their curiosity.

"Uh … did Ryan put you up to this?"

"Up to what?" Frank asks as he pulls the cartons out of the plastic bag along with plastic cutlery, napkins, and paper plates.

"This. The ride, the food … this."

"No," Frank tells her unconcernedly. "I offered and since I need to eat and I'm not going to if you don't, stop talking and start eating. And don't tell me you are on some damn diet. Neither one of us can survive on rabbit food."

Frank's rather brusque matter of fact way with the conversation does much more to put Vee at her ease than had he handled her with kid gloves and tried to charm her. Soon they are both enjoying hardy helpings of Caribbean barbeque, creamy coleslaw, and sweet potato fries. They chased it with large Styrofoam cups of sweet iced tea.

The television was on in the breakroom and the news was reporting on an incident from earlier in the day where a naked man was running around the Hard Rock Café on Miami's waterfront. Vee shook her head and said, "Now there's a man that's a few feathers short of a duck. Of course a few feathers is all it would take if the size of that little blurred out dot they are using is any indication."

Frank was in the middle of swallowing his last bite of slaw and started choking. Vee stood up and pounded on his back until he could catch his breath then all he could do was start laughing.

"Sorry?"

"No you're not," he said still chuckling. "Ryan is going to lose all his pretty hair."

"Honestly, and they call women vain," Vee said with a grin that almost matches Frank's and they finish their meal in charity with each other.

Eric and Walter stopped in the hall to watch the two and Walter asks, "Who IS that?"

From behind them they hear, "THAT is Ryan Wolf's cousin. Excuse me gentlemen." Horatio Caine walks into the breakroom to find out why the young woman is there.

Frank looks up, wipes his mouth and immediately presents the stoic face that most are used to seeing.

"Frank. Miss Wolfe."

Immediately Vee is on guard. "I think, now that Sgt. Tripp has been kind, I should go find that waiting room."

"No," Frank said. His tone left Vee in a quandry. Her instincts told her to run but Frank's tone and presence kept her glued to her seat.

"Horatio, you've never met Ryan's cousin. Vee, this is Lt. Horatio Caine."

"How do you do?" she asked politely and quietly having already guessed who the man was.

"Fine thank you. And Frank is correct. This is a much better location for you to wait. The waiting area is pretty full right now. Frank?"

Frank turned to Vee and said, "Uh uh. Get the look off your face. No one is in trouble on account of you or for any other reason. It is going to be a couple of hours at least before Ryan gets here so get comfortable … and stay put."

"Yes Frank."

Out in the hallway Frank stood, arms crossed, almost daring Horatio to say something. "I take it Mr. Wolfe was with his cousin when he got called to the scene."

"Yeah. They were on their way to that fundraising shindig that Boa Vista helped set up."

"Which would explain the evening wear. Had she been at the scene long?"

"An hour. In a hot car. And too many stares starting to come her way."

"Hmm," Horatio said inferring nothing and everything. "Now about the case …"

# # # # # # # # # #

Though Vee had put up a valiant fight she eventually fell into a doze on the end of the sofa in the breakroom. Frank came in once, saw her, and put his coat over her. Everyone seeing it realized that the young woman was under Frank's protection and since no one wanted to get on his bad side they gave her a wide berth.

Dawn wasn't far away when an exhausted Ryan Wolfe walked quietly into the breakroom. "Pug?" he asked quietly. "Hey Pug … let's get out of here." Seeing her eyes moving under her eyelids and seeing her clinched and shaking hands Ryan realized she was in the middle of one of her dreams. He sensed someone come up behind him and without even looking to see who it was he flapped his hand to make them go away.

Gently Ryan took one of Vee's hands. They were like ice due to how tightly she had them clinched. "Vee. Wake up. Come on." Once the hand started warming he took the other one. "Pug. C'mon, time to wake up," he said keeping his voice quiet, calm, and even. Vee's eyes shot open and she nearly came off the sofa but Ryan stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.

Looking over Ryan's should she spots several lab personnel and she wanted to curl back up and disappear. When she realized she was draped in Frank Tripp's coat her embarrassment went through the stratosphere.

"Easy," Ryan said sensing her momentary panic. "You ready to get out of here?"

"Geez, all I need to complete the pathetic look is to have drooled on something."

"Hey, I've done it a few times. We all have. Forgive me for taking so long?"

He was making a ridiculously contrite face which only made Vee slowly grin. "You are being silly. There's nothing to forgive. Look, if you have to stay I can catch a …" She noticed that at some point he'd changed his clothes.

"Actually if you don't mind I need to drop the tux off and catch a couple of zzz's. You mind if I borrow your couch."

"You can take the bed. I caught my zzz's already."

"No way. You've still got dark circles under your eyes."

"That's what make up is for."

"Pug …"

"Ryan …"

"Do you two go at it like this all the time?"

They both turned towards the speaker and said "He/she started it" at the same time.

As tired as Calleigh was she gave them an indulgent maternal smile and said, "Get out of here before another call comes in."

"I need to give Frank his coat back."

"He's over at the courthouse getting a subpoena," Calleigh said. "But you can leave his coat at his desk."

Vee looked at Ryan who led her over and then watched as she wrote a quick note and signed it with a picture of some kind of bird before shoving it and a bag of Skittles candy in the inside pocket. He was tempted to ask but wasn't sure he wanted to know.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

When Frank got back and saw the breakroom empty he wasn't surprised but instantly followed that with a little crankiness for realizing he was disappointed when he had no business feeling that way. As he walked to his desk his scowl cleared a path. Seeing this Calleigh thought something had gone wrong with the subpoena but stopped when she saw Frank spot his jacket. He picked it up to put it on then, still scowling reached into the inner pocket. He pulled out a piece of paper and a package of what looked like candy. Something on the paper – presumably a note – brought a smile to his face and his entire mood seemed to change.

Calleigh tried to keep a smile off of her own face at her suspicions and then headed towards her quarry. "Frank? How'd it go at the courthouse? Did we get the subpoena or not?"

"Already passed it to Horatio."

"Fantastic. Now to get it and take the look off Junior's smug face."

"Uh oh. Did Pretty Boy hit a nerve?" he asked referring to a person of interest in the case she was on.

Calleigh rolled her eyes. "Not exactly. He just thought he'd be able to use his father's friends to road block the investigation. What about the case Ryan was called into?"

"Waiting on DNA but it looks pretty cut-and-dry. Daughter comes home early and finds boyfriend in bed with mom. Daughter runs to daddy who comes unglued and calls the lawyers. Lawyers serve mom with papers that she'll be losing alimony and they'll be suing for full custody of daughter. Boyfriend gets served with restraining order at the same time. Boyfriend's parents get in on the act and have a restraining order against cougar-Mom. Mom and daughter's now former boyfriend get into a huge fight. Mom stabs boyfriend with broken wine bottle and tries to fix one of the sloppiest frame jobs, trying to throw suspicion on 'disloyal' daughter or 'violent' ex-husband. The end."

Calleigh rolls her eyes and making reference to an old soap opera mutters, "As the Stomach Turns."

"Yeah. Anyway, I'm heading out. You have my number."

"Got any plans?"

"Sleep," was all Frank would admit to but Calleigh suspected he might wind up dreaming of other things.

# # # # # # # # # #

Frank was in danger of grinding the enamel off of his teeth. He'd meant to go straight home. And he'd driven right passed all three exits that would have taken him that direction before he admitted he wanted to make sure that Vee got to her apartment safely. It was stupid. Ryan would have taken care of it. Hell's bells, Ryan probably wouldn't even want him near his baby cousin. What the hell was he thinking? Then to make it worse he'd seen Ryan's car and tried to drive off only for the girl to practically run in front of his car to stop him. What the hell was he thinking? What the hell was SHE thinking to do something so crazy!

"I oughta turn you over my knee. Are you trying to wind up pot hole filler?!"

For the first time he glimpsed a little of the old Vee that had taken up hiding rather than risk getting hurt. Stomping over to him she growled, "Are you following Ryan? Is that it? Do you people think that somehow I am … I don't know … corrupting him or something?! 'Cause let me tell you …"

"You need to borrow some feathers?" Frank asked, impressed despite himself to find himself practically nose to nose with a woman that wasn't afraid to take him on.

"Don't you dare turn into some smooth-talking Texas cowboy." Frank blinked and took a step back. "Now you listen here Buster. Just because I like you does not mean that I am going to be used to hurt Ryan. Got it?!"

Frank just looked at her as horror slowly dawned in Vee's eyes and then her face as she realized what she'd said and who she'd said it to. She clapped a hand to her mouth, started backing up, and would have fallen if Frank hadn't come out of his shock to stop her from going down.

"Looks like I get to make a habit of this," he told her softly.

"Looks like you want to wind up with back problems," she mumbled in return before stepping back out of his arms and looking everywhere else but at him.

"Ryan isn't in trouble and I'm not looking to get him … or myself … in trouble. I just wanted to make sure you got back to your place. Ryan was pretty toasted from what I hear."

Trying desperately not to think of the fool she had just made of herself Vee grasped the straw he was holding out. "Yeah, he was. It didn't take much for me to convince him to crash here rather than drive to his place. About what I just said …"

Frank surprised them both by interrupting her and saying, "I like you too. I don't think we know each other well enough to do anything about it. But getting to know each other could be worth pursuing even if nothing ever comes of it. Any woman that likes fishing and football as much as Ryan claims you do has to be worth knowing."

"Favorite team?" Vee asked, intrigued.

"Long Horns."

"Yes!" she shouted before cringing. "Uh … I mean … that's … that's really good … great I mean." Then Vee sighed. "I give up. As you can see my brain has more than a few open splices right now so … so maybe when you get to know me you … you won't …"

"Stop worrying at it. It'll happen or it won't … but neither one of us needs a headache so … we go slow. I got kids to … aw hell … I'm too damn old to be thinking what I'm thinking."

"No you're not," she told him quietly. "I'm … I'm really done with people that haven't grown up yet. I … I … I need to be around people that understand that life isn't one freaking long party and that real life … really real life … isn't some tv show that you win by knocking off the competition and backstabbing your team members to be the last one standing."

Quietly Frank said, "And then there's Ryan. That complicates the hell out of it."

"Maybe. Maybe not. There's not a lot of people that Ryan would let me drive off with. Before he texted me last night I thought there would have only been one … our cousin Tony … so that must mean that he trusts you. I guess there may be others but you're the first … and only … non-family type person. That counts with him … and with me."

Frank understood she was paying him a compliment of good size. They were standing there wondering what to say next when a door opened and they both heard, "Frank? You seen … there you are."

They both turned and Frank said, "Damn Wolfe, you look about like I feel."

"Okay," Vee said. "I've about had it with the he-man stuff. Both of you inside. I'm cooking you something to eat."

Frank got a smart ass look on his face and asked Ryan, "She cook?"

Ryan's stomach growled and he said, "Like a goddess." Turning to his cousin he got a pathetic look and begged, "An omelet with all the trimmings? And homemade biscuits?"

"Are there any other kind?" she asked as she started towing Frank to her front door.

"Homemade huh."

"Yeah. They might not be like your momma makes 'em but I've gotten no complaints."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

First Ryan's phone buzzed then Frank's phone buzzed. When Ryan's phone buzzed again immediately afterwards Vee gave up trying to not get nosey and picked it up to see a picture of one of the men she'd met the previous night.

"Uh … Mr. Simmons?"

Walter looked at his phone and then asked, "Who's this?"

"Vee Wolfe. I answered Ryan's phone. Did you just try and call Sgt. Tripp as well?"

"Uh … yeah."

"Is it anything that can wait? They're both … um … asleep."

"Er …"

"Listen," she said before holding Ryan's phone so it could pick up the noise in her living room.

Walter on his end started chuckling and asked, "Do we need to run some earplugs over there stat?"

"No," Vee said calming down when his voice said the wasn't an emergency. "I'm used to it and Ryan only snores that loud when he is exhausted. Can I take a message?"

"Actually Calleigh … Calleigh Duquesne … just wanted to check on them. For obvious reasons," he added with another chuckle. "I'll tell her they're both in good hands. They are in good hands. Right?"

"Fed and watered and crashed while watching 'The Maltese Falcon'. You sure there isn't a message. I … I guess I could wake Ryan up."

"Nope. I'll let Calleigh know all is okay."

After she hung up Walter looked at the phone and then started smiling. He spotted Calleigh and called, "Hey Calleigh. Found 'em. Or at least …" Walter had to stop 'cause he started laughing. "Man. They're both snoring. I can't imagine how she can hear herself think."

"She?" Calleigh asked though she already had her suspicions.

"Yeah. Apparently Ryan and Tripp are crashed at Ryan's cousin's place … and I do mean crashed. She answered Ryan's phone. Man, they are loud."

Smiling mischievously Calleigh said, "I seem to recall a certain afternoon where someone fell asleep filling out paperwork."

Walter cleared his throat and said, "Did I say they were loud? Naw … but she said she'd taken care of them. Her exact words were that they'd been fed and watered and had fallen asleep asleep watching an old Humphrey Bogart film."

"Good to know. Now let's see if we can get our work finished so we can go home. Curling up with a Bogart film sounds pretty good."

# # # # # # # # # #

Two days later Ryan was signing in when he heard, "Musta been nice to have two days off in a row. Some people have all the luck."

Ryan turned to see Lily Coronado dressed in her scrubs, standing with her arms crossed. She was an assistant in the ME's office.

"Wasn't a full two days but it definitely was appreciated."

"You could have called. We could have … done something," she said smiling suggestively, attempting to hide her annoyance.

"I figured you'd be out … with Howard the Dentist … or your mother," Ryan answered referring to the man she'd initially planned to go to the banquet with and to the woman that had warned Lily off of him.

"Well I wasn't. You would have known that if you had come to the banquet like you said. I was hoping to introduce you around."

"Got called in," he said, trying to edge around her without success.

"And after that?"

Ryan gave her a frown. "Lily …"

Finally losing the war with her attitude she asked more aggressively, "Is she really your cousin? I heard she doesn't look anything like you."

Ryan was about to snap when a voice said, "Yes she is. No she doesn't. And what the hell business is it of yours anyway?"

Lily's mouth dropped open and Ryan had to fight to keep his closed. Frank then asked Ryan, "You gonna take Shorty crabbing or you gonna make her suffer?"

The two men started walking away and Lily headed to the elevator looking like she couldn't believe what just happened.

Rather than give Frank a straight answer, Ryan said, "You know calling her that is driving her crazy."

Frank just grins and says, "Yep."

Ryan gives a surprised chuckle and said, "I'm not making her 'suffer' on purpose, I just haven't been able to work our schedules out. The nights I have off she's working. Vice versa."

"Speaking of her working … I've been asking around. You have any idea the kind of reputation that Gil's Place has?"

Changing his mood quickly Ryan said, "Yes I do and if you can get that hard-headed cousin of mine to quit I would be eternally grateful. I told her she can give notice on her apartment and move back in with me. She won't. I told her I'd cover her rent until she found a different job. She won't. I've tried everything. She won't. I hate her working there and have told her that multiple times. She just tells me she's spent most of her life paying her own bills and she isn't about to stop now. I … I can't take that away from her. She's always taken pride in it and frankly she's done a hell of a job all things considered."

"I can understand that." Hesitating, wondering if he was doing the right thing, Frank said, "There's a job opening at the marina where I keep my boat. The manager there … he owes me. You think …"

"The place you took us yesterday?"

"Yeah. She'd need to have a couple of lifesaving certifications but other than that all the manager wants is someone dependable and willing to be flexible with their hours."

Ryan slowly grinned. "Vee has lots … LOTS … of certifications including Wilderness and Remote First Aid, Offshore Emergency Medicine, and a Battlefield Medical Response certification. She's also an experienced marine mechanic and worked in aircraft maintenance from her time as a contractor."

"Then what in the hell is she doing at Gil's?"

Ryan shook his head in frustration. "You know what the economy is like. And I can't prove it but I think those aaa ...," Ryan stopped and checked his language when he saw civilians in the hallway. "The … er … jerks from Porter International are giving her a bad reference when her employment is checked."

Frank nodded his understanding then said, "Let me talk to the guy at the marina. Maybe something can be worked out. It ain't gonna hurt she knows fishing either."

Ryan grinned and then Frank grinned, both of them remembering Vee's enjoyment of the day out on Frank's boat. They both laughed remembering how she'd practically come unglued when she caught the fish of the day … a twenty-four pound Kingfish.

"What's so funny?" Natalia Boa Vista asked catching them both off guard.

"You had to be there," Ryan told her. To Frank he said, "Thanks. I mean it. And if you can …?"

"I'll call him some time today and ask."

Ryan was called over by Walter who let him know that they needed to go; there was an accident with multiple fatalities at the Twelfth Avenue draw bridge. Ryan waived to Frank and Natalia and he and Walter disappeared into the elevator.

Natalia asked Frank, "Are you going to tell me I had to be there?"

"Pretty much," he said waiting to see what else she wanted.

Natalia crossed her arms and said, "You didn't come to the banquet."

"No."

"Frank …"

"I told you I was working that night."

Getting closer to her target she said, "Ryan didn't make it either. Lily was disappointed."

"No, Coronado is pissed off that Ryan isn't acting the devoted lap dog she expected him to. Give it a rest Natalia. It was a busy night. Even Calleigh had to come in and it cost her a last-minute babysitter."

"So everyone has said. Apparently I also missed meeting Ryan's cousin."

"And?"

Natalia just looked at him, thinking about lost opportunities, then shrugged. "And I hear she's … different."

"Different how?"

"Tall. Very tall."

"She is that … six foot, maybe six-one."

"And … er …"

At that moment Frank's phone rang and it was a call he had to take so Natalia only had her aggravation increased as he walked off obviously not in the least concerned he hadn't answered her questions.

Calleigh had overheard the tail end of the conversation and seen Natalia's expression. "Hey Nat!"

Covering her discomposure Nat pasted on a smile and said, "Hey! How're the kids?"

"Fine, thank you for asking. And now I'll answer the ones you didn't get to ask. Yes, in addition to being tall, she's pretty though not in a traditional sense. Yes, she seems nice … a little subdued if she doesn't know you but she'd certainly pass my grandmother's manners test. Yes, she made him laugh. Yes, she is definitely Ryan's cousin. And no, Ryan doesn't seem to have any problem with Frank acting as … hmmm … her protector. Got any that I didn't cover?"

Natalia looked a little chagrined then said, "Oh all right. I was curious. First Ryan has some heretofore unknown cousin that winds up getting involved in a case. Next thing you know it sounds like Frank has been … has been … charmed by her."

"Charmed?" Calleigh asks with a laugh.

"Well what would you call it?"

"Intrigued. Smitten. Bitten by the bug. Knocked off his pins. Enamored. Infatuated."

"Calleigh!"

Calleigh laughed. "I think it's sweet."

"Sweet?!"

Calleigh realized something even if Natalia didn't. Natalia was jealous. This did not bode well.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Three and a half weeks later Frank relayed that his friend from the marina had run through all of his other (and male) applicants and had expressed definite interest in someone with the kind of qualifications that Vee had. When Ryan had relayed the information to Vee, it hadn't gone over nearly as well as he'd hoped. Vee viewed Ryan's actions as heavy-handed and Ryan was unable to understand why Vee was so upset. The disagreement only grew from there.

"Ryan!"

"Pug!"

"Look, Cuz … just because my brain was like a BB in a box car there for a while doesn't mean we need to go all the way back to middle school where you had to do everything for me!"

Ryan groaned in dramatic frustration. "Can you say that you really like being a bouncer?!"

"It may not be the most ladylike profession in the world but it is a job I found … on my own … and I'm good at it. At least at Gil's. The crowd he pulls in is just different from the South Beach night club scene."

"You've still had to knock a few heads."

"Yeah. But it isn't like I haven't had to do it before. Or did you think just because Rob's people were my bosses that I was given the pay without having to do the job … or put up with the crap that came with the job? Nice to know you are just as embarrassed by me as Rob was."

Taken aback Ryan yelled, "No! That's not what I mean!"

"Ryan, you going out and hunting up a job for me makes me feel … feel … useless … pathetic. Like I'm still that basket case I was a few months back and being viewed as incapable of the most basic life function of an adult. And now you have Frank doing it. Or maybe … never mind."

"Or maybe what?" The man himself was standing outside the screen door of her apartment. Against his better judgment he'd come by to ask her if she wanted a ride to work but that was now looking unlikely.

"I thought … I … just never mind. Fine. Whatever. I'll go to the interview. I'll put on my best face. Hopefully I'll get the job so the two of you won't be so damned ashamed of me. Lock up when you leave Ryan. I'm running late and the bus is going to be here any minute."

"I'll …"

"No! I am not helpless! I can do a few things for myself you know!"

She brushed passed Frank, flew down the stairs and was running across the parking lot and still missed the bus because the driver was one of those that refused to wait even if he saw you sprinting. It was obvious that Vee was near melt down when she kicked one of the apartment complex's dumpsters hard enough to make it sound like a large Chinese gong.

Frank looked at Ryan and asked, "You going to let me handle this?"

After a brief but obvious struggle Ryan answered, "Do not hurt her."

"That isn't the plan."

"Plan or not … don't."

Frank nodded and got in his car and drove over to where Vee was checking the bus schedule to see when the next one was coming.

"Get in the car."

"Excuse me?!"

Trying to keep his blood pressure under control and only partially succeeding Frank said, "I promised Ryan that I wouldn't hurt you but right now, the way I feel, you either get in the car willingly or I put you in the damn car. Understand?"

It was a power struggle but then Vee gave an exaggerated groan, threw up her hands both figuratively and literally, and did as Frank had told her.

"Seatbelt," he told her through clinched teeth.

All was silent in the car until Frank said, "We did not do this to hurt you."

"I've already heard that song from Ryan. I don't need another repeat."

The difference between Frank and Vee is that while they'd both had their hearts broken, Frank was coming up on twenty years more life experience than Vee. Despite how much she'd seen of the world and the people in it, he'd seen a lot more than she even knew was out there. Not to mention he and Melissa had spent years in counseling only for their marriage to fall apart anyway, in part due to Melissa's drinking, but the lessons Frank had learned about communicating hadn't been wasted.

Remaining calm he told her, "I am not ashamed of you. It was never about being ashamed of you. And if you want to know the truth, it is damn insulting that you think that is how I feel. Do I like you working at Gil's? No. I'll admit that when I first heard about it I automatically worried about you getting hurt. But you've proven me wrong. You're strong and you have a good head. You know when to get involved and when to stand back. You've also shown you know how to take someone down … Officer Delaney said he wouldn't mind having you back to help with the self-defense course if you're ever interested."

"Then what is the big freaking deal?!"

"The big … freaking … deal is that I don't like …" He chewed his lip angrily for just a moment before snarling, "I don't like those men staring at you."

Vee just looked at Frank's angry profile as he drove until she could bring herself to believe she'd actually heard what he'd said. "You have got to be kidding me! They're mostly geeky college kids and a few retirees out trolling the lonely-hearts club scene. They're just looking at the costume."

"They'd like to handle what's in the costume dammit."

Feeling her own brand of insulted she asks, "You don't honestly think I'd recip …"

He interrupted her with another snarl. "Of course not! It's not you I don't trust, it's those peckerwoods with their roaming hands! You don't think I know what a pinch-bruise looks like?! Ryan may have bought that story that you ran into the bench weights in the gym but I sure as hell didn't. What makes it worse is that I don't even have any right to say a damn thing about any of it, sure as hell not to feel the way I do! Dammit to hell, what am I supposed to do?! Leave you working at that place and pretend it isn't driving me crazy?! Letting those assholes try and destroy the dignity and self-confidence you've been fighting to take back since what's-his-name abandoned you so he could get his rocks off with the latest in a long line of hot messes?!"

Vee was shocked into silence; shocked into losing a grip on the anger she'd been holding onto so tightly. After a moment she whispered, "I'll put my resignation in tonight."

Frank hadn't been expecting it and even questioned what he'd heard. "What?"

A little louder Vee said, "I'll put my resignation in tonight."

"Vee …"

"No. You're right. I … I was wrong. Pride goeth before a fall and all that. I'm sorry. And I'll apologize to Ryan."

Feeling like a heel despite winning the argument even more than he'd expected Frank sighed and said, "You don't owe me that. I'm not your father."

"I know that. You don't think I know that? I wouldn't feel … the way I feel … if I saw you as some kind of father figure."

Still frustrated and now worried that he'd come down too heavy-handed Frank said, "I'm not doing this because I don't think you're capable … of whatever the hell it is you think you need to be capable of. Ryan isn't either." He sighed. "I should tell you to keep the damn job until you get a replacement. Another man would. But I'm not another man. I'm me." Finally he snarled a crude f-bomb before saying, "Put the damn resignation in. Got it?"

Quietly she said, "Got it. And for the record? I don't have a problem with you being the strong man you are. I have a problem being the weak person I am."

She'd managed to shock him once again. "Vee …"

"No. You had your say now I hope you'll let me have mine. From the time I was born people have … have doubted that I could be anything of any value, anything but a drain … on my family, on their finances, on society's resources … doubted I'd even be able to survive. But I did … and I have. And while surviving I've eaten more crap sandwiches and received more 'life sucks' awards than even Ryan knows. But the facts are these: I can't help standing out. For whatever reason God made me this way. I've done what I can with it but I can't change the fact that I'm a six-foot-tall woman and built more like a linebacker than a ballerina. My voice is as loud as I am big and I sound like where I come from … the 'po side of town. My feet are the size of bass boats and I'm more comfortable in steel-toed boots and flip flops than I will ever be in dainty heels or sandals. It is hard to find feminine clothes that fit me so I have to make do and sometimes I have to do embarrassing things like shop in the same stores that cross-dressers do. I get mistaken for a man almost every day … and get shocked double takes when they realize I'm not … if they realize I'm not. Rob … I don't even know why … but that's done and over with. And so is the fact that he was constantly trying to change me; that he thought with enough classes, enough clothes, enough grinding and polishing, I'd finally be the ideal that he thought I should be. Then you come along and … and for only the fifth time in my life did I feel truly and totally accepted for what I am … for who I am. I can count it on one hand Frank. My dad, my brother, Ryan, our cousin Tony … and you. And trust me, the other four have never made me feel the way you do. Ryan … he makes me feel safe. Not trapped in a gilded cage, but safe … and loved … like my father and brother always showed they felt. You … you make me feel safe … but when I'm around you I also feel real … and alive in a way I never have … in a way I never thought I would, the way I thought only existed in those ridiculous bodice ripper romance books." Looking out the window she whispered, "Is it so wrong that I want to prove that I'm worth … worth that?"

"What do you mean that you're worth that?"

Desperately wanting Frank to understand Vee stumbled through an explanation. "I don't want people to care about me because of, or in spite of, all the … the adversity that I've faced. I want … I need … the people that care about me to know that I'm not going to abuse that caring, that I don't take it for granted, that I'm not just a taker in life, that I can and will stand up and do what must be done, that I'm willing to earn my way. I don't want them to be there just because they think I need them. I want them to know that I'm strong enough to be there for them too. I'm not some broken thing … person … that has to have help keeping myself taped together. I want to prove that I'm just as strong as the next person … and strong enough to … to … be better than … than that person you met the night of the explosion. I love being able to look up to Ryan … and you; being able to have respect and trust makes it even better. And I don't have a problem being "the girl" in either relationship because I know what I am … I'm female … and I don't resent being female or any other of the head games that a lot of women play these days. I just don't want to be "the weak girl" in either relationship. I want to be … equal. Not because it's given to me out of compassion … or pity … but because I've earned it."

Frank didn't know what to say so he said nothing. And Vee worried that she'd said too much. They were a block from the club when Frank suddenly pulled over into a dark parking lot. When he turned the engine off the only light came from digital display on the car dash. Both of them nearly blind, Frank reached out and unbuckled the seatbelt and then pulled her into his arms and in a slightly shaky voice he said, "You're going to go into work and you're going to stay safe and not take crap off of anyone. Then you're going to turn in your resignation and I don't give a damn what anyone has to say about it. You're going to walk out of the club and you're going to get in my car."

"What?"

"Hush. I'm not finished. You're going to get in my car because I'm picking you up because the idea of you getting on a bus in this part of town gives me an ulcer. I'm driving you to your apartment. I'm walking you to your door. Then I'm coming inside. You hear what I'm saying?"

Breathlessly Vee said, "Yes Frank."

"No fighting me on this?"

"No Frank."

Then contrary to what he wanted to do he gently pushed her back into her seat, told her to buckle up, and drove her the rest of the way to Gil's.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Ryan was on his way to his own place when he got a call from Frank.

"It's handled."

"Yeah?" he asked in relief.

"Yeah."

Ryan heard something in Frank's voice so he asked, "Uh … everything okay?"

"She said she's turning in her resignation. Tonight."

Surprised he nearly yelped, "What?"

Repeating himself with unusual patience Frank answered, "She said she's turning in her resignation tonight."

"Halleluia! How did you manage that?" Ryan asked, thoroughly impressed.

"I haven't got the foggiest damn idea." Frank really did sound perplexed and Ryan almost grinned. Frank rarely showed anything less than complete confidence to the world. Ryan felt less like grinning when Frank added, "I'm picking her up after work and taking her back to her place."

"Yeah?"

After clearing his throat Frank said, "I need to know if you have a problem with that."

Ryan gave it serious consideration then said, "Same rule applies. Don't hurt her."

"Not the plan."

"You said that before."

"I meant it before. I mean it now."

Another moment of silence and Ryan said, "The Jackass hurt her bad. It's been a year and I still want to beat the crap out of him."

"I'm with you on that one. Anyone that hurts her … anyone … is on my shit list."

Ryan heard what he wasn't saying. "Fine. Just … I don't need the details. We … er … gotta work together."

Frank cleared his throat. "I'd … rather not … talk about this at work."

"Are you … dammit."

Frank said, "I'm not ashamed of … whatever the hell is going on. But … damn Wolfe I'm more than a few years older than she is and … what if she …"

In a flash Ryan realized something he'd never expected and he relaxed. "Frank, I've never seen Vee like this. Not even around the Jackass, and they were together over eight years. And the things she's had to deal with in life … I always thought she needed to be with someone … older." Quickly he clarified, "I mean more mature. And that's all I'm saying because I look damn stupid trying to play cupid and give you advice when I can't even get my own crap together. Just don't hurt her. I'll beg if I have to. And I agree; this isn't anyone else's business … not even mine … until the two of you are ready to share it. And even then I don't want the details. Can we just leave it at that?"

"Hell yeah," Frank said, relieved.

"Fine. Do me a favor and tell Vee what I said. It isn't a conversation I really want to have with her."

"I'll do that. And Ryan …"

"Yeah."

"You're all right." And then after a pause he added, "And you're still my favorite dust monkey."

Ryan grimaced good-naturedly. "Ass."

"Back at you Buttercup."

They both hung up grinning.

# # # # # # # # # #

Vee hung her keys on the magnetic hook attached to her refrigerator door. Nervously she stammered "Uh … are you hungry? I can fix …"

Taking charge Frank took her in his arms and kissed her. "No food. No talk. Just sit with me."

She swallowed and nodded. Frank led her over to the sofa and pulled her down so that she wound up in his lap then reached down the side of the sofa and pulled the leaver that turned that section it into a recliner. He loved her sofa, it was built for people like them. He'd slept on it twice and neither time did anything hang off.

Vee was nervous and in very unfamiliar territory. Once they were out of their teens Rob's interest in her had changed and was more about reputation than hormones. Despite their eventual engagement, they'd never gotten "around all the bases" and she wasn't sure how to explain that to Frank.

"Relax," he told her.

"Trying to," she responded breathlessly.

"Yeah," he muttered. "Been a long time for me too."

An hour later Vee was astraddle Frank's lap and her costume of the week – Valkyrie – was definitely not in the shape it was in before she left work. Then from the pocket of Frank's jacket came the sound of a dog barking. He stopped what he'd been doing and was breathing heavy.

"Move," he told Vee and she did though she looked rather dazed.

Frank reached in the jacket and pulled out his phone that was playing the distinctive ring he'd set for his son's calls. Before he could say a thing a voice shouted, "Dad! Dad?! Are you there?! Dad?!"

"Frankie … son … slow down."

"Dad, you gotta come to the hospital. Like now. Mom picked up Francine and Shelly from the mall and … and … for some reason she decides to get on Alligator Alley only somewhere along the way she ran off the road. Mom hit her head. The doctors … I don't know … they won't tell me nothing, I'm only sixteen. Francine is all banged up too and Shelly is freaking out. You gotta come Dad. You … you …"

"I'll be right there. Which hospital? Is there a doctor or nurse nearby?"

Frank is trying to straighten his clothes and talk to someone from the hospital at the same time. Vee brushes his hands away and tucks his shirt in and finishes putting everything else together for him as well.

"What's her alcohol level?" Whatever it was that Frank heard was bad. "And the kids? _/response/_ Are you sure she needs surgery? _/response/_ How many stitches?! No … no I understand. I'll be there as soon as possible. Put my son back on."

When Frank's son gets back on Frank tells him, "Listen up. I am on my way. You are not alone. I have a friend that works at the hospital … that's right, you remember Alexx. Do what she tells you to. Francy … she's gonna go to outpatient surgery … Son, don't panic on me here. I need you to sit with Shelly. Apparently your Aunt Coral is also on her way. They got her number from your mother's purse. She may get there before I do. You do not leave that hospital with her or anyone else before I get there. Understand me?"

Frank was still on the phone with his son and he was halfway out the door when he abruptly stops and turns. Vee looks him straight in the eye, nods, then flaps her hand for him to keep going. She got a short nod in return and then Vee watched from her window as Frank rushed to his car, got in, and took off without another backward glance. She continued to watch until his tail lights indicated he'd made it into traffic and then she turned, rubbed her arms, and then after sending a quick prayer that everything was okay with Frank's kids, thought about what they'd come so close to doing.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Vee had been up until the early morning hours and groaned when her phone went off. Then she remembered and made a fast grab for it.

"Hello?"

"Pug?"

"Um … hey Ryan."

"Don't try and figure out how to say nothing. The story is already all over the station about Frank's ex-wife. I just got in and heard. You okay?"

"I'm fine. But what about Frank's wife? He just rushed out of here and this was before his daughter had to go into surgery. I haven't heard anything since."

"Er … you haven't?"

"No. I take it that it's bad."

"Yeah. Hang on a sec." Ryan stopped talking but the resulting silence wasn't completely quiet. Then she heard a door close and realized that Ryan must have been going someplace more private. "You still there?"

"I'm here," she told him.

"Frank's ex-wife," he said putting an emphasis on ex. "She was registered at a blood alcohol level nearly twice the legal limit. She was wearing a seatbelt but apparently she still did some damage to her face and upper body. She also has a shattered foot and ankle."

"Geez. I could tell it was bad just from the side of the conversation I was hearing. What about the girls? It didn't sound like his son was in the car when whatever it was happened."

"The youngest daughter, who was in the back seat of the car and only has very minor injuries, called her brother right after the accident but was in shock and not wanting to get her mother in trouble so she didn't really let on how bad it was. When the kid arrives on the scene he immediately calls 911 … they were pretty far off the road and likely wouldn't have been seen until morning, if then. I don't know all the details but … it's bad. From what I overheard H and Calleigh saying, Frank's already filed for full custody of all three kids and … look, it's bad. I … I just … Dammit Pug, I'm sorry. I thought … I don't know what to say."

"Hey, stop that," Vee said softly trying to control her emotions and be understanding. "Frank's got real responsibilities and you know you agree with me on that. His kids come first. He wouldn't be the man he is if … if it played out any other way. If you see him, and can tell him in private, tell him I understand. Tell him … tell him I understand because of Ronnie … and because what you did for me. Sometimes you just … look, just tell him I understand and that I hope his kids are okay and that things work out with them."

Quietly Ryan says, "I'll do that but I hear he's going to be out a couple of days."

"Sure. Just … don't be mad Ryan. Life is what it is. And kids … they need their dad. You know?"

"Yeah Pug," he responded. With some concern he added, "Please don't change your mind about the marina job."

After a moment Vee said, "I won't. I turned in my resignation to Gil last night, effective immediately. If I don't get the job at the marina … well … I might have to take you up on that offer to use your second bedroom after all."

"Anytime Pug … anytime."

"Sure. I'll let you know how it goes." She looked at her bedside clock before saying, "And I need to get going if I'm going to get there on time."

# # # # # # # # # #

A few hours later Vee is wiping sweat and a dirty residue off her face and hands with a towel that wasn't much cleaner. "Mr. Taylor, it's a myth to rev your engine before turning it off."

"That's not what my mechanic says."

"Yeah, well I'm sorry to tell you but your mechanic is just ensuring he has work down the road. All you're doing is leaving unburned fuel coating the cylinders, and that forms a deposit that gums up the works. You're wrecking your engine. And you also need to up the amount of time you are flushing your engine. A quick rinse isn't going to cut it … you need to use good pressure and flush for at least ten minutes with fresh water to make sure no crud builds up, especially since you are running in salt water. This engine doesn't even have a hundred hours on it; it shouldn't be this dirty and running this rough."

The man grumbled for another thirty minutes but then started calling her a goddess, an amazon, as he watched her work on the engine and show him the ins and outs of properly cleaning and maintaining it. And she didn't charge him a dime, or make him feel stupid for the things he didn't know but imparted it as if she was sharing a secret with him that someone should have shared with him before now … it wasn't his fault, he'd just been given faulty advice. She also helped the man load the boat back on his trailer and even gave him a few hints on how to drive the trailer without beating it up on the rocks that lined the boat ramp.

She stepped back as he pulled out just shaking her head at people who bought expensive toys before learning how to operate them properly and then wondered why they fell apart or needed such expensive repairs so quickly and so often.

"You're hired. I thought Frank was giving me a load of bunk but damn you're good. I've tried to tell Carlson the same thing I don't know how many times and he blew me off. You do it and you're a goddess." The man smiled and shook his head.

She grinned and said, "I'm none threatening."

The man starts laughing. "Sure you are Lass, sure you are. When can you start?"

"Today Mr. Shipwell."

"Call me Syd and let's just say on Monday. That'll give me time to get your paper work prepared and for my missus to get back in town so she doesn't give me grief for hiring another female without her giving a looksee."

"Uh …"

"It's not going to be a problem, she just likes to put her stamp on any females that get hired. Let them know who is head cook and bottle washer around here. Er … you speak any Spanish?"

"Yes," she said not mentioning she also spoke French and a smattering of several other languages that she'd been forced to learn to do her work for Porter International.

"How well?"

Vee turned to a man on the dock that was obviously Hispanic and started speaking to him in Spanish. He lit up and started talking back to her in kind and then thanked her for explaining what the English words on the board he'd been trying to read meant. The man headed back to his car to get the required documents and money to rent a dock space.

"On second thought, today is as good a day to start as any."

Vee grinned and got to work. Basically she was going to be a Jack … or in her case Jill … of all trades around the marina depending on what was needed and when. She'd be doing some office work in the dock shack where people signed in and out of the marina, but she'd also be out and about inspecting dock spaces, making sure people were mooring where and how they were supposed to, checking safety lines, and giving an assist and general advice to boat owners and marina visitors when called on to do so.

At five o'clock Syd found her teaching a woman how to properly tie off and when she was finished he told her, "Quitting time. I'm going to have enough people covering through the weekend. Just come in Monday morning and we'll get you legal and on the payroll."

"Fisherman morning or office morning?"

Syd grinned. "Office hours are eight to five. Get here around 7:30 and come to the sloop at the end of the dock. I'll let my wife know you're coming and the coffee will be hot and strong. You game?"

"Yes Sir."

"Good. See you then."

# # # # # # # # # #

That afternoon when Vee finally made it back to her apartment she was startled to find Frank Tripp asleep in his car. He jumped and blinked when she tapped on the window, then opened his door.

"Frank, you've sweated through your shirt. You want to get dehydrated sleeping in that oven?" All Frank did was grunt.

"Frank?"

"Did you go to the interview?"

"Yes, of course I did. I may have acted like a spoiled brat yesterday but …" She saw Frank sway when he got out of his car. "Okay, that's enough. At least let me get you some water … fix you a sandwich or something like that."

Frank sighed. "You have a beer?"

"I do; Ryan left some here. You can have whatever is in the frig after you eat."

Frank peered at her through blurry eyes. "You don't drink do you? I remember Ryan mentioning it."

"No," she answered, not elaborating.

"Why?"

"Because." Then she shrugged and figured it wasn't like a secret or anything. "I never know how something is going to hit me. Sometimes my body metabolizes alcohol like a normal person and sometimes … not so much. And …"

"And you got issues from your family getting killed by a drunk."

"Some … not the drunk part but how she acted afterwards. Like it was Dad's fault that she hit us … and she almost succeeded in convincing everyone of her version. She was … she was a cop in another precinct with a lot of connections and clout. It was a mess. And I suppose I let it influence my choices more than I should but … there you have it."

"Melissa nearly … she could have … my girls. The last time I saw them could have been the last time I ever saw them."

Quickly Vee grabbed Frank's waistband when he stumbled again. "Have you slept at all?"

"Just now?"

"That's not sleep; that's catnapping in an oven. Do you need to be someplace at a certain time?"

"I sent the kids home with their grandparents … Melissa's parents … in Cape Coral. Her mother's a bit wishy washy but her old man is solid. That's where they were living until the beginning of the school year. Hell, you don't want to hear this."

"Wrong. If it affects you it interests me. At least I know your daughter must be sort of okay if she's able to travel. But if you don't want to talk, I can respect that. Either way, how about at least coming in long enough that I can feed you. And if you don't have someplace to be you can put your feet up and close your eyes." She wanted to tell him he was a nasty shade of gray that wouldn't even look good on a corpse but she didn't; it wouldn't help the situation and she suspected he already knew.

"After last night?"

Softly she said, "I guess you haven't talked to Ryan. But here it is. Your kids come first. No ifs. No ands. No buts. I'd give … I'd give a lot if I could have Dad back … my whole family, but a girl's father is just something special. They need you. Just let me help a little and then … whatever plays out plays out. Even if this goes nowhere I still like you as a person and would like to try and keep you as a friend. You're fun … and you offer good shoulder to lean on. So how about you give me a chance to reciprocate a bit of what you've been giving to me."

Frank was too tired and too too many other things to process all that she'd said, but her offer of a shoulder and her sofa was appreciated.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

After debating with herself for quite some time Vee picked up her phone and made a call. "Ryan? Are you at work or anything?"

"About to clock out … been a long day. Everything okay?"

Vee answered, "Yes and no. Is that Lt. Caine around? Can you get him a message?"

"Yeah … uh …"

"First, yes I got the job and I'll tell you more later but I've got Frank here and he's gonna stay here for a bit … a day, maybe two, depending." Looking over to where Frank lay Vee said quietly, "He's all rolled up Ra-Ra. Reminds me of Tony during his divorce."

"That's bad."

"It is. He hasn't told me much … just his kids are with their grandparents in Cape Coral … and I got the idea that he did it to get them out to stabilize their living arrangements and because of how bad things are going to get for their mother. That's all I know right now and I'm not going to say anything else. Just … he doesn't need to be alone or running out to grab food or driving at all or anything else. I'm … I'm going to do for him. Okay?"

Refusing to give into the momentary internal struggle he had regarding his baby cousin, Ryan nodded to himself then told her, "Considering I've taken advantage of some of that myself I think Frank is in good hands. What do you want me to tell Horatio?"

"Just let him know where Frank is and that he'll probably call him at some point in the next twenty-four hours when his brain is able to create a spark. Right now, like I said, he is pretty trashed. I don't like his color. And this thing with his kids … it has shaken him. And no, I don't know anything about the wife …"

Ryan said, "Ex-wife."

"Wife … ex-wife … he was married to her, she's the mother of his kids, and that all counts. I'm guessing things didn't go bad because he wanted them to so I'm going to respect the boundaries and let him talk if and when he feels like it and not put any pressure on him. He's got a plateful going. Just tell Lt. Caine what I said. Okay? And I promise to call later with the job details. I just need to run to the market. I … er … I got my car out of storage this morning."

Despite the seriousness of the situation Ryan slowly grinned. "I catch you street racing again …"

"Knock it off," Vee said embarrassed. "I was sixteen and feeling my oats."

"Uh huh … just remember what I said." Then losing his grin he said, "You will let us know if Frank needs anything … anything at all. Right?"

"Yeah. But Frank's head is still screwed on straight, he'll ask if he needs. He just needs some sleep first."

"Gotcha. And you better call me later."

"I will."

He'd been in the locker room and turned to find most of the team staring at him, waiting.

"Mr. Wolfe?"

"H, that was Vee. Apparently Frank showed up at her place and is finally getting some sleep. She said he'd give you a call at some point in the near future."

"Good. That's good. Do they need anything?"

"She says not. I'll ask again when she calls me tonight. She's probably waiting to see if Frank is actually going to stay or if he's going to go back to his place. He's crashed on her sofa before after pulling an all-nighter."

"Really?" Calleigh asked with surprised interest.

"Don't make a big deal of it. I've done it too. Her place is just convenient … conveniently located I mean." Ryan was trying not to make more of it than there was. Frank had already said that he didn't want his … friendship or whatever it was … to become grist for the office mill.

"Okay." Horatio put a lot of meaning into the word. "I'll keep a watch for Frank's call and you let us know if things change on that end. Calleigh, do you have a moment before you go?"

That was the signal for everyone to break it up and get going. Ryan used the chance to escape before anyone could start asking him any pointed questions. Horatio noted his speed and then looked at Calleigh with his eyebrow cocked. "Is this going to be a problem?"

Suspecting that Horatio knew more about the behind the scenes goings on of his team than he let on she answered, "I don't think so; it shouldn't anyway. Natalia is the one that gave a pass when Frank showed a little interest a few months back. Frank took her rejection well as far as I could tell … to the point I don't know if he was even serious about any interest. If she is now second guessing her choice … well, sometimes you don't get second chances. And Natalia doesn't strike me as the type to make an issue of it either way. She didn't like it when Ryan and Eric were competing for her attention when she first came to the lab. I doubt she'll want to be part of anything similar."

"Yes … I agree … but let's keep an eye on it anyway. And what of Mr. Wolfe's take on the … er … possibilities?"

"I get the feeling that Ryan might actually have been taking a hand in putting his cousin under Frank's nose. He may not have been doing it consciously, but he has certainly not shown anything other than comfort with what has happened up to this point."

"And what has happened?" Horatio asked, knowing if there was anything to know Calleigh would have that information.

She chuckled, "Probably not much if anything. Frank is cautious and from what I've seen Ryan's cousin is as well. On the other hand … they're certainly very er … relaxed … with each other. Beyond that I'm not going to guess."

"Hmmm. This situation with Melissa is certainly going to complicate a great many things."

"Have you heard any more?"

"Unfortunately I have. She was driving with a suspended license, something she apparently had not shared with Frank or anyone else. Not even her brother who was acting as her lawyer. He's a civil lawyer and … from what I understand … at the very least there is now going to be a criminal traffic case to deal with."

"Frank's going for full custody of the kids?"

"Full legal custody … but physical custody may be a different matter. I'll let Frank share that, assuming he does."


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Frank watched as a Grabber Orange Ford Mustang Coupe with black striping down the hood pulled in beside his own car. He admired the muscle car while wondering when Vee would be back from the store. He'd woken to find a note letting him know where she had gone propped up against his phone on the coffee table. He'd only woken because his former in-laws had called to tell him they'd arrived home safely and that the kids were already asleep in their former bedrooms. Francy was a little sore but the medication they'd given her at the hospital had kept her calm and continued to keep any real pain at bay. An appointment with their former doctor was already scheduled and they were texting him the date and time. And since Francy had stayed calm, Shelly had remained calm as opposed to how she'd been at the hospital. They'd also made an appointment for her with the counselor the children had been seeing off and on since the divorce. That call was followed by one from his own parents and they'd offered to come out but his father was still recovering from knee surgery and Frank hadn't wanted them to get involved until he knew where things were going.

Frank wasn't sure how he felt at the moment, all he knew is that he was anxious to make sure Vee came back safely. Then his jaw almost dropped when he realized it was the woman he had just been thinking about getting out of the coupe. He stood up and opened her apartment door to make sure he wasn't seeing things but sure enough it was her. He slid his shoes on and went to help her with the bags she was taking out of the trunk.

"Nice car," he told her, his voice gravelly with fatigued.

"Hey, you're supposed to be asleep," she told him giving him a concerned once over, noting that his color was still off but a little better.

"Woke up about twenty minutes ago. You didn't have to do this," he said indicating all of the bags.

"I was going shopping anyway. This way I just had a good excuse to keep the bags of junk that kept hopping into the grocery buggy when I wasn't looking."

"Mmm hmmm," he said, not believing her.

"Burgers okay for dinner?"

"Vee …"

She turned once they were back in the apartment and before setting the bags down she said, "Frank, if you have to go just say so. I'm not going to chain you in place. I get you've got responsibilities."

"You really don't mind if I crash here? Even after last night?"

"No. I really don't mind. And to answer the next question, no … I don't think you are taking advantage of me. Where ever this goes, I will first and always be someone that is more than willing to be your friend. Got it?"

She started setting the bags on the kitchen counter and then gasped when Frank came up behind her and pulled her against him. "Where this is going is forward … it is just going to have to move slower than I had planned." His hands slid down from her waist to her hips and he pulled her even tighter against him. "That doesn't mean I won't be thinking about it … and I'm hoping you're thinking about it," he said huskily into her ear.

Vee relaxed against him and feeling she wasn't going to fight him he seemed to relax as well. She told him, "Slow … fast … cold … hot … soft … hard … doesn't matter what it gets called it will be just right." Frank hissed when she reached back and to pull him even tighter against her back, once again learning to appreciate how strong she was.

They stood like that a minute, swaying to their feelings then regretfully he said, "I'm … gonna grab a shower if you don't mind. I need to wash the cobwebs away, then I gotta make a couple of phone calls."

"Towels are under the sink," she reminded him after clearing her throat and trying to sound like she didn't want to climb into the shower with him to find out what it was like and where it would go. "If you need some privacy I'll fix you a glass of tea and you can sit out on the balcony with the slider closed. I'll bring you a plate when I'm done cooking."

He hugged her one more time from behind before turning and slowly heading toward the hall. She saw him grab a black gym bag along the way and realized he must have gotten his spare set of clothes out of his car.

An hour and a half later Vee couldn't stand it anymore. Frank was getting angrier and angrier with each call, to the point he had waved off the plate of food she'd tried to bring him. He glanced at her sharply when she first stepped out onto the dark balcony then jumped when he felt her hands on his shoulders. It took ten minutes of massaging and pretending she couldn't hear what he was saying on the phone before Frank's muscles stopped feeling like a slab of cold beef under her ministering hands. The next phone call it even seemed like he wanted her to hear.

"Dan, I know she is your sister but you gotta listen to what I'm saying. There's nothing I can do. She's going to have to ride this one out.

 _/response/_

"Why would you think that? Nothing anyone has done for Melissa up to this point has helped. I covered for her in the beginning, even putting my job on the line. I paid for rehab, participated in all of that counseling … including marriage counseling and having the counselors refer us out to other counselors when it was obvious things weren't getting better with them. We still wound up divorced because when Melissa is invested in believing something she'll go to any length to prove she is right."

 _/response/_

"I know that. And you and I have worked out our differences. It has all just been tried. Hell, your parents have paid for rehab twice that I know of. Your aunt and uncle took her on that European vacation thing. Coral sent her to that medi-spa that specialized in shit I've never even heard of that was supposed to detox her system so she wouldn't have the cravings and could stay clean. But until Melissa chooses to not drink none of us are going to be able to keep her from it."

 _/response/_

"Hell yes I'm furious. They're my kids … my girls. And I could have lost them because their mother couldn't stop bending her damn elbow long enough to safely transport them from the mall to home. Had I known that she'd escalated to drinking and driving there'd been hell to pay. And you don't even seem to realize how this has messed Frankie up. Now he's blaming himself because he wasn't the one to pick the girls up instead of Melissa. A sixteen-year-old kid shouldn't have to be playing bar guard for his mother."

 _/response/_

"Yeah. I know this is going to be rough on the kids. And I know it is going to be rough on your parents and the rest of the family. Hell, even my parents are shook up. I've done what I could over the years to spare everyone this kind of experience but Melissa has refused to cooperate."

 _/response/_

"No, I convinced them not to come out right now but they're going to want to see the kids … at least talk to them in the next couple of days. Your dad said he would take care of it."

 _/response/_

"Sure. Sure I get it. I don't blame any of you for what happened. Melissa hasn't been cooperating with any of us."

 _/response/_

"Dan, you gotta get passed taking responsibility for your sister. You and Coral both need to understand that it isn't that Melissa is sick and can't help herself; the number of times that she has quit proves that. It is that she is choosing to drink rather than deal with things … and as a form of manipulation and punishment against those that she feels are in some way keeping her from the life she wants. Most of the time it isn't like she is out to make herself feel better, it's like she is out to make other people feel worse. Now she seems to have added the kids to that list and that is sure as hell not going to continue." Frank hesitated a moment, Vee getting the feeling that some of the hesitation was due to her, then he said, "I'm gonna tell you something and you need to hear it and then decide whether the rest of your family needs to know. You know why the kids are stair steps? Because Melissa used being pregnant as an excuse not to drink."

 _/response/_

"I'm not trying to make her look bad, I'm telling you how it was. We both used to party pretty hard, it's how we met. Then we decided to give it up because we wanted other things more … including a life with each other. We weren't married long before she catches preggers with Frankie. Doc tells her to stop drinking or else … with lots of pictures and diagrams. It scares the crap out of Melissa, you know how she is about that sort of thing because of your daughter. Frankie is born, things are great and then she catches preggers with Francine before Frankie is six months old. She says her birth control failed. I believed her. Francine is barely four months old and she's telling me she's pregnant again but it was a false positive. I'm pretty damn careful after that … but two months later she really is pregnant again with Shelly. This time I don't believe her because I'd been taking care of it. Turns out she … she sabotaged us if you can believe that. Shelly is an emergency c-section and Melissa has to have her tubes tied or the next one might kill her. Shelly is four months old and we're both going crazy with three in diapers and all the crap that goes with babies that young. One day I come home from work and Melissa is passed out drunk in the bedroom and all three kids are screaming at the top of their lungs … haven't been fed or changed in I don't know how long. The only thing I can get out of her is that why shouldn't she drink, it's not like she's going to get pregnant. It was right then … you have no idea how I felt at that moment and I hope to hell you never do. I wanted it to be postpartum depression, a breakdown, something, anything other than she just didn't care enough about our babies. I started pulling as many double shifts as I could so we could afford a nanny to come in and help during the day. Things are better and … then suddenly they're not because the nanny, who I rarely if ever saw, was some young girl paying her way through school and apparently I had the hots for her."

 _/response/_

"Yeah, that's when that train started rolling. She wouldn't leave me alone about it. We went through five nannies in twelve months. And she just … she just drank Dan. She didn't drink until she was drunk, was rarely completely drunk, but it was obvious after a certain point in the day that she was impaired. I did everything I could think of … It got so bad I took her off the bank accounts, did all the grocery shopping, paid all the bills to keep her from having access to money to buy liquor. She still managed to get her hands on it. And she blamed me and everyone else for 'needing' to drink. Her nerves. The stress. My job. The kids. The house. She wanted to go back to work, then she resented going back to work like it was my fault she had to. You name it. The rest you know."

 _/response/_

"Yeah I know. But if I get involved a prosecutor is going to say that I'm trying to manipulate the system and maybe even make it harder on her. Things are going to be rough enough as it is. The only reason she hasn't already been taken into custody is because she's still in the hospital and gonna be there another week or two and after that she's gonna have to have reconstructive surgery and they don't know what all yet. Get her a criminal attorney. She's gonna need one. Maybe she can be remanded to a state rehab facility instead of incarceration. I've seen it happen that way. The problem isn't just that she was drinking and driving … it's that she's already been labeled a habitual offender and had her license suspended, that she was driving drunk with minors in the car, and what her alcohol level was when she was brought in. She's got three strikes against her. Dan, she's gonna need a damn good lawyer."

 _/response/_

"Sure. And I've already talked to your dad about it. They've agreed not to fight me having full legal custody. In return I'm willing to agree to the kids living with your parents … at least until after the kids have calmed down enough to be part of the discussion; certainly let them transfer back to their old school and finish this year out over there. They'll have a more stable living arrangement than they would with me but I'll be sure that, at least with your dad in charge, they'll be raised with the values and rules that I expect. I've already said something to Frankie. The boy is sixteen and should have some say in where he goes to school. Next year is his senior year and then he wants to go to college. The girls are right behind him. Three years and they're all out the door. I don't want to take that away from them or your folks … but I'm not going to force anything on the kids either. However, and Coral better understand this as well, there is no way in hell that they'll ever be in Melissa's custody again, not even marginally. You understand what I'm saying? The kids live with your parents only so long as Melissa isn't living in the house. We got time to arrange things but the kids' welfare absolutely comes first. That is non-negotiable."

 _/response/_

"I'm sorry it happened too. And whether the family believes it or not I'm sorry that Melissa is hurting. Even as nasty as things got between us I … I don't want for her what she has dished up for herself. But this time she is going to have to pay the piper in some form or another. There's no way around it."

 _/response/_

"Yeah. I will. And you too."

Frank shakily rang off and set his phone down. He wanted a beer. He wanted something stronger. But he knew neither one was really a good idea. Instead, he asked, "Still have that plate?"

Hearing Frank struggle to keep the emotion out of his voice she squeezed his shoulders one more time and said, "Let me heat it up. You want it here or inside?"

"Better eat it here until I'm fit company."

Caressing his face she told him, "The company is fine, let's just take care of your comfort."

Frank swallowed then sighed. "Still here. I need the air."

"Another glass of tea to go with it?"

"Yeah, that'd be good."

Vee started to walk away but Frank suddenly grabbed her one armed around her waist and pulled her back. She could feel his face against the small of her back. She just let him lead, let him take what he needed. His grip her on was so tight it was almost painful but she was a strong woman and built the opposite of fragile.

"Inside," he muttered huskily after a few moments.

"What?"

"Inside woman. Inside. Now."


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

In no time Vee found herself pinned against the wall in her small kitchen with Frank aggressively kissing her. Part of her was alarmed but another part of her found it deliciously exciting, not to mention experiencing the novel feeling of a man taller than she was manhandling her strictly for his pleasure and hers. When he demanded she wrap her legs around his waist she briefly came back to earth only to have him growl, "Stop worrying about my damn back and worry that I'm going to break my promise to move slow."

"I'm not the one that asked that of you."

Frank groaned and said, "You are not helping."

"Good," she moaned as she began to move against him as she'd learned to last night.

A little while later, both of them barely remaining upright in the kitchen, Frank grumbled, "I am not some damn teenager."

"Neither am I, so what's your point?" she asked still recovering her breath and waiting for her heart to slow its jackhammer pace.

Frank chuckled and said, "That hasn't happened to me in a hell of a long time. I need another shower."

"That hasn't happened to me ever. Does a shower help you recover your sanity?"

Frank was silent for a moment while what she said sunk in. He tilted her head up and said, "Look at me." Once she did he asked, "Are you telling me …"

"That it was not at the top of his priorities and I never knew what I was missing. I thought the talk I heard from women was just that … talk. And after a while … it just wasn't part of the landscape we operated in. What time we did have together was usually spent with his family or at business functions. I wasn't the only one that travelled and our schedules didn't always overlap. Looking back we were bound to fail eventually and it wasn't all his fault. And can we not talk about this?"

"We need to … some. I don't need the nitty gritty details but I do need to know enough to do this right."

"Frank … oh my god … just … just assume I'm clueless and if I'm not don't hold it against me if you need to … er … correct my technique."

After a moment of perplexed surprise Frank muttered, "Well hell."

Worried at what his words might mean Vee asked, "Is this a problem?"

"No," Frank said wanting to toss her over his shoulder and carry her straight to the bedroom and mark her as his in a very physical and permanent way. "But we play it slow and careful from here on out. And I gotta hit the pharmacy, next time we may not have the sense to stop."

Vee got a little heated and said, "Dammit. You show me the universe and now you're taking it away?!"

Frank drew her into his arms and gave her another deep kiss. "Don't plan on giving anything up. Plan on making sure it gets better."

"Better? There's a better? My god, I barely survived this, my brain will melt if it gets any better."

Nearing the point of too much temptation Frank gently pulled out of their embrace. "Me. Shower. Alone. Cold water. You. Clothes. On. Now."

Vee looked at him and said, "You. Tarzan. Me. Jane. We swing from the trees again later?" The naughty gleam in her eyes was unmistakable.

Frank wanted to clap a hand to her backside for her sass but the thought of the feel of her beneath his hands had him backing up and moving towards the shower at nearly unseemly speed and that brought an even bigger smile to Vee's face.

# # # # # # # # # #

Not even Frank Tripp is superman. It wasn't long after eating that Vee had no trouble towing him to her bed and convincing him to lay across it and get some rest. Even when he started mumbling, embarrassed at his seeming weakness, he appeared to fall asleep mid mumble. She pulled a sheet over him and then went back to finish cleaning the small, remaining mess in the kitchen and then placing the promised call to Ryan.

"Hey Ra-Ra."

"Hey Pug. I just got off the phone with Tony. He wants an update on what he is calling 'the Frank situation' and on the job."

"Geez. He's getting pushy; gotta be the stress. He and Cheryl should just run away to Vegas instead of letting their families put on that huge society bash," she said but Ryan heard the grin in her voice so knew she hadn't taken offense.

"Yeah, that's totally it. Speaking of getting pushy, I want details … uh … not Frank details but … I mean I do want to hear about him … oh hell."

Vee chuckled softly and was reminded yet again of why she loved her cousin. "Okay, I'll keep it rated G."

"Yes. Please," he said in a near panic.

Her chuckle tapered off into a smile and she said, "I got the job and while I'm not going to be making the money I was in contracting there's some potential there."

"Potential?"

"Mr. Speedwell … he said call him Syd but I think I'll wait until he says it in front of his wife … he said that I'm getting paid to work for the marina; however, he doesn't mind if I pick up some mechanical work here and there and that it would actually be good if I could because most marina's have someone that can do casual labor type work but the guy they used to have moved down to the Keys a couple of seasons back and he thinks it has hurt business. I met this woman today that asked if I'd do a demonstration of basic mechanic work for her daughter's scout troop. She'd pay me to overhaul her husband's trawling motor and I'd get some free advertising out of it. Thank goodness you talked me into renewing my licenses."

"So I'm good for something?" he asked, kidding around with her, glad that she sounded so happy about the job and the possibilities that it could open up.

"You're definitely something all right." They kidded around a little more and then she said, "I know you won't come right out and ask but Frank is sleeping … in my bed … but that's just because he's exhausted and needs some real sleep, not just a nap on the sofa."

"Er … just because?"

"Okay, mostly because. But Frank and I agree that moving slow is what is required even if it kills us. We've talked around it a little but until he knows how this thing is going to play out with his kids and his ex-wife there is no way to judge how much time we are going to be able to spend together, how frequently, or if his kids will even be moving in with him. We both have to work and I'm sure he's going to be traveling to Cape Coral to see his kids every chance he gets. Apparently he gets on well with his in laws … former in laws … except for the sister who blames him for most of everything that has happened, now and in the past and is leaning on making him responsible for all of the evil in the universe."

Ryan snorted at her exaggeration. "Are you okay with those conditions?"

"The moving slow? Yeah." Slowly she admitted, "At least for the most part and if I'm being logical and practical about it. This is new territory for me Ra-Ra. Just the short time Frank and I have been getting to know each other has made me realize just how dysfunctional and shallow my relationship with Rob was; how immature Rob was. If I'm being realistic I see areas that I need to address too. There's a big difference between being a trophy and being a partner … and there needs to be a difference in not just how it makes me feel, but how I act. I need to figure out … I need to get comfortable … doggone it. I guess I'm just trying to say … look, I don't exactly know how serious I am supposed to be and right now is not the time to put that kind of pressure on Frank. I just don't want this to blow up in my face … I have a feeling if it does I'm going to miss something important."

Ryan said, "Then just try and relax and enjoy it for now. Frank is hell of a guy but … and I don't want to get into this too much … he is older than you are. It is going to be an issue at some point … even if not between you two, to others that may have some importance in your life … and his."

"Is that your way of saying that Tony mentioned the age thing?"

"He did bring it up, but it wasn't the first question he asked. I think he's willing to just kinda wait and see it for himself. Can you live with that?"

"Yeah, so long as there is nothing snarky or a lot of talking behind my back by the rest of the family. I'd actually prefer to keep this quiet until I have a better handle on it."

"You sure that's a good thing?"

"I don't want to lie, and I won't if asked; but, while part of me wants to shout out to everyone that Frank picked me … me and not some South Beach hottie with the right stats and pedigree … at the same time I want to keep it private because I know people are going to talk and … and I don't know that I'm ready to deal with that until Frank and I kinda figure things out."

"Have you discussed that with him?"

"It hasn't come up. I'm worried if I bring it up that I won't say it right or he won't answer the way I want him to. Both sides of the coin are problematic. I want him to know how important he is to me, that I'm not ashamed or anything, but he's got so much stuff he is dealing with right now, and whether the two of you have said anything or not I know you two working together plays into it as well. Then there is his kids, his family, and all of that. I want him to know that I understand if things need to stay quiet and that I'm okay with it being that way. I don't know Ryan, this is just more complicated than it ever got with Rob. I just don't want to mess things up."

"You should still talk to him. You know the drill."

Vee sighed. "Yeah, yeah. 'Communicate honestly and in a timely manner so my insecurities don't have fertile ground to grow in.'"

"Just talk to him. If he won't talk about it then maybe you have more important things to consider."

"Fine. And you're right. But I'm not going to jump all over it right now. He has enough trauma to deal with and I don't want him to think of me as just another kid he needs to protect."

"Fine," Ryan said, agreeing with Vee's choice. "But don't leave it go long if it continues to bother you. Take it from someone who has aced every level of 'failure to communicate;' you can't let something like this go, not if you want what you have to stay strong and succeed."

"Yeah. And I won't."

"Now on to things less likely to cause a migraine … tell me more about the job and when you start and all that."

In the other room Frank teetered on the edge of exhausted slumber but after hearing Vee's phone call to Ryan he debated getting up and having the discussion that needed to be had. In the end he just couldn't quite get his eyes to open and stay that way. He hoped Vee was true to her word and would let this new thing between them ride for a bit. He'd been attracted to her from the beginning but it was now a different and deeper shade of attraction. He was too old for kid games, they didn't do anything for him these days even if they did for other men his age. He had liked being married, liked the idea of having a family and coming home at night to them, liked the benefits, and if he was honest he had even liked some of the problems because at one time he and Melissa had worked on them together, as a team. But while the age thing might not bother her, it did however bother him. And he wanted to know what she meant by serious. She was young enough that … oh hell, he was definitely too tired to give it the energy the subject needed. He needed to sleep … and he definitely needed to put away the problem of who would know what and when. Damn he hoped she wasn't just talking when she said she would understand about keeping whatever this was private. Right now he had to focus on his kids and what they were thinking. Frank finally fell into an uneasy sleep as memories of holding Francy as she cried because they'd had to shave quite a patch of hair on the left side of her head to put staples in where her head had struck the passenger-side window.


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

Two weeks later Vee was running the vacuum in her apartment, fairly certain that life had dished up another steaming bowl of disappointment.

Frank had only stayed the one night and had left in a hurry the next morning to head to a meeting with the lawyer about custodial issues. He'd said he would swing by later in the day but it was two days later before she heard from him … well, not really from him but from Ryan with a message from Frank. Melissa's reality had finally slapped her square in the face and that, combined with a nasty case of alcohol withdrawal, had made her behave as enough of a danger to herself that she'd been Baker Acted with a mandatory three-day placement on the hospital's psych ward. Not even her lawyer could see her as she was under a 24-hour suicide watch complete with restraints to keep her from pulling out her IVs and ripping at her injuries. Every time they cut back on the sedatives and her memories would resurface she would get more hysterical than the last time.

Frank had driven with Melissa's brother to Cape Coral to tell her parents and Frank's kids in person. It had not been pleasant. Frankie and Francine had pulled themselves together after an initial burst of angry disbelief; but the youngest, Shelly, wasn't dealing with the situation well at all and it came out that Melissa had been twisting facts and telling stories on Frank and it took the combined effort of the whole family to set her straight – with even Coral being forced to concede a few facts – and then all she could do was cry because the mess her mother had made of her belief and trust. Vee hadn't seen much of Ryan during that two-week period either as their case load was through the roof and would remain that way for a while because it was Spring Break season.

Work at the marina kept Vee busy and it wasn't all just checking boaters in and out. The marina was surrounded by several large hotels and resorts popular with the Spring Breakers. Her previous training in crowd-control as well as her experience as a bouncer had been called upon several times. Just last night she'd had to break up a serious brawl between drunken party boys that had tried to dock in the wrong place so they could get to a party. It was just another day's work in paradise until one of the last to settle down had spit on her and called her the Jolly Green Giant's ugly cousin. Her temper had popped and she'd body slammed the creep and then picked him up and gave him a nuclear wedgie when she hung him on a handy line hook that had been screwed into wooden dock posts. The chauvinist pig had squealed plenty and the brawl had attracted the attention of a couple of patrol officers, but lucky for her there had been numerous witnesses willing to testify that not only had it been self-defense but that Vee had been defending the safety and property of those that lived on boats in the marina.

She winced and looked briefly at the scuffed up knuckles on her right hand as she re-wrapped the electrical cord of the vacuum and put it away in the coat closet. She decided that enough was enough and that she was going to start carrying her collapsible steel baton out of an abundance of caution. She was also going to need to go back to using her old handgrips and adding upper body exercises to get back into the shape she used to be in when she was a contractor. She'd thought she'd be able to put aside all of the strength training she once did and just stick with the cardio and toning exercises. Oh well, it obviously wasn't like she had to risk anyone caring whether she was looking "mannish" again. What a depressing thought.

Speaking of exercising, she felt the need to hit the gym to run off some energy. Today was the first day she didn't have plans and she had about three more days of it to look forward to. Syd had been forced to close the street-side marina access and let the City bring in their traffic control people. The boaters could access their property from the waterside and there was enough staffing for that without her being around. There was that flexibility Syd had warned she'd need.

Vee was starting to get the fidgets. Since they still hadn't installed the promised lockers, Vee texted Ryan to let him know not to freak out if she didn't answer, that she was going to the gym for a while. She changed and then headed out to try and keep her brain from vibrating inside her head.

When she got to the gym she was happy to see her favorite piece of equipment was available. It was an adjustable treadmill that could operate anywhere from a three percent decline to a twelve percent incline. Not only that, you could set it to randomly change and adjust through a timed work out. It was exactly what she needed. She set the machine to a challenging, 60-minute pyramid workout and got set to burn the fidgets out of existence.

She was three-quarters of the way through her work out when she felt eyes on her. Using her peripheral vision and the mirrors set around the gym she noticed a tall guy with brown hair giving her some serious stare glare. She decided to finish her workout and then see where it went. She wondered briefly if he was a friend of the party boys and prepared for another fight. She finished her cool down, got off the machine and then headed for the door. After getting a better look she realized the guy was younger than she'd initially thought. His beard wasn't fully grown in and what was, was too soft for someone any older than twenty and she suspected he was younger than that.

Not wanting to cause a scene in the gym she left and made her way towards her apartment. She noticed the kid had followed her out and she increased her speed a bit. He didn't follow her of the stairs but she almost had her hand on her door when he called up to her, "Hey! You own this car?"

She stopped, thought about ignoring him, then and looked down at him from over the banister. "According to the bank I do. Why? Did I run over your dog or something?"

"No."

"Well, it's not for sell either so goodnight and …"

"Your name Vee Wolfe?"

The kid was getting a little personal and Vee wondered if she should text Ryan but decided to see if she could discourage the little stalker herself.

"Cut to the chase. What is it you want?"

Throwing some angry attitude at her he asked, "What's your problem? Why haven't you called my dad?"

It took three seconds for Vee to believe what she was hearing and then give the kid a better look. She slowly descended the stairs and had her suspicions confirmed. She asked, "You prefer Frank or Frankie?"

"Just answer the question."

"One, I don't know that your dad would appreciate either one of us having this conversation. And two … geez, let's just stick with point one. It is loaded with enough explosive potential as it is."

"I'm not playing. My dad is having a really hard time and you've done nothing but make it worse."

Feeling like she'd somehow gotten out of sync with the rest of the universe Vee looked at Frank's son and sighed. "I'm sorry but I'm not prepared to get into the nitty gritty details until Frank has given me explicit permission to discuss anything with you. I will tell you that I haven't not called Frank for nefarious reasons or whatever you are imagining. I respect him a lot and I know for a fact he has a challenging situation he is dealing with … that all of you are dealing with. By the way how are you sisters and mother?" Vee winced and held up her hand. "Never mind, not my business. I just hope everyone is on the mend or has a plan in place to head that direction."

"Don't lie."

Getting tired of the kid's mouth she said, "I'm not and Frank being your dad or not, I don't appreciate you accusing me of that kind of crap when you don't even know me."

"Aunt Coral checked you out and she said …"

"Stop. Right. There. I don't know your aunt from Eve but I suggest if you want to check my pedigree and whatever else you ask your father. He knows the real story. Additionally, if you are referring to anything that she might have gotten from a company called Porter International take it with a grain of salt because it is owned by my ex-fiance's family and they're smearing me because I decked him after catching him in the act – and please tell me you are old enough that I don't have to explain what that means. If you are talking about the fact that I spent a lot of time in recovery around the same time as that jolly little episode … it has to do with getting blown up and injured on the job overseas and also having to deal with my brother dying. Beyond that … like I said, ask your dad. Now if that's all, you just run along and …"

"You don't even care about my dad?!"

"Of course I care about Frank. I care about him enough to abide by my promise I made to him that I would never interfere with him putting his kids first and that's what he has absolutely needed to do and will continue to do and it is what is right that he do … does … do … good lord, I'm having a grammar dementia moment."

"Uh …"

"Frank knows he can call me anytime he wants. I've honestly been worried about him, but until he makes that my business … it simply isn't. I know my place. Please tell me you haven't done anything like be a total doofus like run away to confront the wicked Biloxi Giantess."

"Er …"

"Oh … my … gawd. You have haven't you. Frank is going to flip his lid and I can't blame him. How on God's green earth do I explain this to him? Get up here. There is no way you are driving around Miami this time of night with all the lunatics on the road."

"Wait … I … but …"

"Forget it pal. You got on this crazy train all on your own. It isn't my fault that you didn't know what your ticket was gonna buy you. Either way …" She grabbed Frankie by the upper arm and towed him up the stairs and into her apartment texting Ryan and apologizing for bothering him.

Her "911" text was barely sent before her phone was ringing and she was answering it, coming close to real panic and trying not to show it.

"Ra-Ra? I have no idea what to do." She proceeded to explain the situation while forcing Frankie into a kitchen chair and daring him to move with a pointed glare while she made a sandwich for him and then poured a glass of milk. Frankie for his part felt like he'd fallen down the rabbit hole. He'd come over to confront the witch on wheels that was making his dad so unhappy only here she was throwing a sandwich and milk at him like his Texas grandmother did. He was almost afraid not to eat, worried that the crazy woman was as fast with a broom as Gran was.

"Ryan, what do I do?! Frank is going to have a coronary. He's already under so much stress and I've been so careful not to act like a butthead and create more for him and here comes Frank Dos … I swear it is not really possible for a kid to look as much like their father as Frankie does … charging in and I feel like …"

Vee wasn't the only one that nearly departed this earth when the screen door on her apartment snapped open and closed.

"Vee? Pug?"

"Er … Ryan … I'll call you later. Got a bit of a … er … Frank's here."

"Tell his son it was nice knowing him. And Frank better sure as hell not yell at you."

"Shut up Ra-Ra, your voice is carrying around the whole kitchen. I'll … um … call you in a bit." Vee quickly rang off and stepped back from the very angry man taking up most of the room and oxygen in her kitchen.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Frank was seething and he had a rancid headache that just made it all worse. He was still trying to figure out how Coral had found out about Vee but when he did there would be hell to pay. And now here his son was complicating an already all too complicated situation. He felt like crap. And guilty. Guilty crap. He'd been feeling like crap for a while, every day getting just a little worse. He felt guilty because he'd wanted to call Vee so many times but he'd either been exhausted, working, or dealing with the next crisis. Then he began to realize how unfair it was to expect her to just hang around on hold while he tried to get his life straightened out.

Frank took a step forward and then suddenly he was in free-fall.

"Dad!"

"Frank!"

Vee took a good look at Frank's face and immediately her emergency medical training took over. Frank was burning up with fever.

"Frankie, settle down and stop yelling; I need you to stay calm. We need to get your dad cooled down. He's got a very high temperature. C'mon Kid, stay with me here. Help me get him down the hallway and into the shower."

"Uh …"

"Once we get him cooled down we are going to take him to the ER. Everything your dad has been dealing with has probably tanked his immune system." She didn't mention her concern that he was potentially experiencing some kind of heart issue. "Then add to that going in and out of the hospital setting and all of the general crappy people he is exposed to at work. Ryan – he's my cousin and works with your dad – had the sniffles last week and he's like a germaphobe with the hand sanitizer and stuff like that."

Vee was talking, trying to keep Frankie calm and at the same time get Frank undressed enough that putting him in the shower would actually help. Frank's skin was pale and splotchy where it wasn't rosy red from the fever. She was asking Frank some basic questions and he was barely responding. However, as soon as the water hit him Frank started fussing.

"Uh uh Big Boy. If our positions were reversed you'd be doing the exact same thing and you know it. So suffer along and stop acting like a square with three sides and let us do for you." Frank tried to give her the evil eye a couple of times but she ignored him, thoroughly impressing Frankie as he'd never seen anyone ignore his father's glare with that level of unconcern.

As soon as they got him out of the shower Vee dried him off and started putting one of her sweat shirts on him in place of his other clothes.

"Hell no," Frank grumbled with what little energy he had. "It's pink."

"No it's not, it's light orange … it is actually a Long Horn sweatshirt that accidentally got bleached."

"It's pink and I said no."

"The only other one I have at the moment that will fit you has Strawberry Shortcake on it. It is one or the other … you don't want me to pick based on your current attitude."

Frank finally capitulated but only because he was totally rolled up and every time he started fighting he saw little black dots where there shouldn't be any. He even allowed her to slide on a pair of unisex, draw-string waist, jogging pants because they were black. Frankie was embarrassed. It was one thing to be in the locker room with guys his age, showering after a game, something totally different watching his father get bulldozed by the "Biloxi Giantess."

They almost had Frank out of the apartment door when his knees collapsed again. He also wasn't completely conscious and his fever was going back up with alarming speed. Vee locked her apartment up and then tossed her keys to Frankie and said, "Go get my car open. How did you get here?"

"A … er … a cab."

"Wonderful," Vee muttered as Frankie took off down the stairs.

"Frank? Please don't hate me." Vee picked Frank up in a fireman carry and got him down the stairs and over to her car more quickly than if he'd tried to do it on his own.

"Get in the back. It's gonna be tight," she warned Frankie as she was buckling Frank in. "Your dad and I both take a lot of leg room."

It was a nerve-wracking thirty minutes to get to the ER and then having to find a parking space was another five. She'd let Frankie out to get a wheelchair and he was pushing it back over quickly when he saw she'd found a space. Coming with him was an attractive black woman that for some reason Vee thought she should recognize.

The woman briskly assisted her in getting Frank into the chair. "I'm Alexx Woods."

"Okay … oh … oh yeah. Sorry. I remember who you are now. No, let me push him. At least this way if he wakes up and takes aim I'm the only one he'll have for a target."

# # # # # # # # # #

It had been agreed that Frankie would call his grandparents and that Vee would call Ryan who would then get Lt. Caine involved since he would have all of Frank's other emergency info. Three hours later, the waiting room way too full of people that Vee didn't know and who intimidated the hell out of her, Alexx Woods finally let everyone know that there had definitely not been a heart attack or anything related to his heart. He had a nearly classic case of mycoplasma pneumonia, better known by its common name of "walking pneumonia."

While the doctor explained to the family and to Lt. Caine who would be relaying information to his team as well as Frank's other co-workers Vee quietly edged down the hall and into Frank's temporary location. They were keeping him overnight to make sure he stayed hydrated and to watch his oxygen levels which had been pretty low.

Vee just leaned against the wall looking at him. All of the beeping and the smell of the hospital reminded her way too much of watching Ronnie in his last days. The difference was that Ronnie's eyes never opened. Frank was staring off into space, completely ignoring her. Feeling defeated Vee quietly pushed the table nearer so Frank could reach the cup and straw he was supposed to be drinking from and then began to leave.

"What did Frankie say?"

Quietly Vee answered, "Nothing really."

"Vee …"

"Honestly Frank, he didn't say much at all. This whole mess … it's just we'd never talked about me meeting your kids much less meeting them under … sorry, I guess I just panicked and called Ryan."

"How did he find you?"

"No clue. Kinda freaky if you want to know the truth. I didn't know you'd even said anything about me to them.

"I haven't."

It was like a knife to her heart though why it was didn't make any sense. "Oh. Well … then I don't know how he found me much less how he knew I even existed." Vee wasn't bringing up Melissa's sister; the woman seemed way too strung out to pull into the current situation. "Look, this isn't the time, you need to rest. They're going to let you out of this place in the morning and …"

"I'm too damn old for you. Look at this. I'm lying here in this hospital bed like some old geezer. That's how it'll be."

Vee decided to put a period to that idea immediately. "Frank, pardon my unladylike French, but that is just complete and total bullshit. For one, none of us know if tomorrow will ever even get here. Two, it is just as possible for me to wind up in that bed and you wondering what the hell you are supposed to do with what life has thrown at you. A year ago all my plans for the future came to a screeching halt. A year ago I was dealing with being blown up and possibly being an invalid for a long, long ass time. A year ago I had to watch what was left of my brother deteriorate to nothing and finally leave me for good. A year ago I was ready to cash in my chips and put an end to all the pain. I would have if Ryan hadn't shown up on my doorstep and simply taken me in hand the same way he did when I was thirteen and him not much more than a kid himself. But I'm not a complete basket case anymore and that is in part due to you … just being you and you being kind in a way that I could feel and didn't resent, because you didn't make me feel weak."

"Vee …"

"No. Apparently you've been letting this eat you up and beat you down so now you're going to have to listen to me and get filled back up. What the hell Frank?! We hadn't even had any kind of discussion about what this is between us. Maybe you've been having it in your head but I haven't been in on it at all. Age difference? I don't even know how old you are. And quite honestly I just don't care. It's a number. That's all it is. What I care about is how you act. I already told you I'm tired of party boys, and the ones I had to deal with yesterday only reinforced that."

"What party boys?"

"Uh uh. I wasted enough of my day on those idiots, I'm not taking up my time with you discussing them. Now listen and please hear what I'm saying. Right now you have a waiting room full of family that need you … and they need you to get well, especially your kids. I've said it once but I'll keep saying it as often as it takes to get through your obviously thick, testosterone poisoned skull. I … do … not … expect … you … to … cater … to … me. Not now when your kids need you one hundred percent. Not in the future if we get a chance to explore whatever the heck this is. I don't need it, not even sure I want it or would know what to do with it if you tried to do it. Reciprocity, yes. Having the privilege of being treated as a partner and expecting me to do my part, yes. Being given credit for having a few brain cells, definitely yes. And with that is the fact I should be able to trust that you understand that I'm not holding it against you because your kids need you and that your job has a lot of responsibilities attached to it. You want to call or even txt me to let me know you are still amongst the land of the living? You want me to do the same? I can get behind that. But I don't expect it to come with rainbows, Skittles, and unicorn farts. Just get well Frank. Stop scaring the crap out of people that care about you trying to do and be everything. Focus on your kids. That's all that matters right now. I'll still be here when things settle down and we can figure things out. And listen to the blasted doctors no matter how much you want to throw them out the nearest window. They've got your best interest at heart … and so do I, so don't make _me_ feel like throwing _you_ out the window for being so blasted pig headed. Got it?"

Frank just looked at her for a few moments, something unreadable in his eyes. Finally he said, "Got it. And you sass me like this again, you better pray I don't catch you until I'm cooled down."

Vee snorted. "Yeah, yeah. You'll notice, even with you hooked up and all but strapped down I'm still doing it from this side of the room, well out of arm's reach."

Frank struggled but in the end wasn't able to hide a grin. "Don't you forget it woman."

"Honestly, you are such a guy. Now get some rest so when your kids come in here they aren't going to freak. I'm going to vacate the premises, this is not a healthy time to dump one more thing on them. Understand what I'm saying?" Vee asked, making sure that Frank wouldn't let his feelings force him into something no one was really ready for.

Frank merely grunted as his eyes finally closed and his breathing evened out. Quietly she stepped over and arranged the covers over his feet and then she backed up and whispered, "Honestly Frank, you are such a guy."

She stepped around the curtain that had given Frank a little privacy and nearly ran Frank's kids over.


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

"Oh … er … sorry," Vee stammered backing up quickly. "You're dad is in there. I'll get out of your way." She tried to take off but Frankie stopped her.

"Wait. My sisters wanted to meet you."

Vee slowly turned back to face them after a quick glance at the curtain. "Um, hi, nice to meet you. Look, I promised your dad that …"

A girl that was nearly as tall as Frankie and well on her way to being a beauty said, "We heard. All of it. It's cool," she said off-handedly as she elbowed the youngest of the three, the one that had to be Shelly, when she seemed to want to say something contrary. "And, I think dad should call you when he gets out of here. Or better, give _me_ your number and _I'll_ call you. We have to go back to Cape Coral for school and Dad is going to need someone to make sure he doesn't start swinging from the chandelier. He's supposed to stay in bed a week and that isn't going to happen unless there is someone willing to sit on him. Frankie was kinda impressed that you got dad to even come to the hospital."

"Uh … well … you noticed how sick your dad had to be for me to accomplish that. So … yeah … I'll give you my number in case of an emergency but maybe you should ask your dad before you call. He might have other ideas."

She rolled her eyes and said, "I'm sure he will. He wouldn't be Dad if he didn't. But it isn't healthy to get your way all the time. Totally not. It creates unrealistic expectations."

Vee hurried off after that, trying to escape before she got any closer to breaking her promises to Frank. She also thought privately that she might need to apologize to Ryan and Tony if she was anywhere near as bold and pushy as Frank's daughter had been. Man, when Frank had said she was fifteen going on forty-two he wasn't kidding.

# # # # # # # # # #

The next day Vee had to answer her phone with grease-covered hands when she saw that Frank was trying to call her. She answered only to hear Frankie's voice. "Can you talk to Dad? He and Francy are getting into it."

Before she could decide how to react there was a curse and a growl. "Dammit. My daughter somehow thinks that I need a caregiver."

"Well … no … not really. She thinks you need a zookeeper. Apparently when you feel particularly ornery you have a tendency to swing from chandeliers. Of course, if you are roaring at them the way you are snarling at me we might need to reconsider and I can come over dressed as a lion tamer. I'm sure I can find a whip and chair someplace. That ought to get your attention. And I know I've got some nice, heavy-duty chains in a box under my bed. I shoved them under there after pulling my engine … but hey, nothing like repurposing something to save a couple of bucks. You'll never notice the difference."

There was stunned silence on the other end of the phone and then a gasp and then the sound of deep, nasty coughing. The phone dropped and Vee was just shy of being worried when Frankie picked up and asked, "Uh … you still there?"

"I'm here. Is your dad okay?"

"Yeah. He just tried to laugh and it knocked some of that crap in his lungs loose. It's disgusting."

"Been there, done that. I take it you guys are leaving."

"Yeah, in a couple of hours. But Francy and Shelly are clucking …" Which was followed by what sounded like a pillow hitting him in the head. "Hey! Watch it! It won't be my allowance paying for Dad's phone if you break it. And saying they won't until they know someone is here with Dad."

"Uh … huh. And is your father cool with me coming over? Or … your grandparents?"

"Grandmother is kinda iffy but Poppa thinks it is a fine idea … seriously, that's what he called it. A fine idea. With a smile so he wasn't being sarcastic or anything. Just don't ask what Aunt Coral has to say unless you have a flame retardant suit on."

"Frankie!" said three voices in unison.

Vee smiled and then chuckled. "You are not long for this world old son. Don't you have more sense than to make yourself a target of more than one person at a time?"

"Hey, gotta get my excitement some place."

Oh my lord thought Vee. He is definitely Frank's not-so-mini-me. "Groceries in the house?"

"Uh … yes … no … I don't know."

"Put your sister on please."

After a few questions answered quickly and proficiently by Francine, Vee told her that she'd be there before they left, that she needed to wash off the grease and run by the market first. She was perfectly calm until Francine added, "Great! You can meet our grandparents and our Uncle Dan before we leave. They kinda missed out last night when you wouldn't do anything but lurk in the hallway and then left so fast."

# # # # # # # # # #

"You can stop laughing now Ra-Ra."

"You're getting your just desserts and you know it. She sounds just like you did at that age."

"Watch it or I'll hope you get the hots for a woman with five kids, all of them teenagers that think you are perfect for their mother and have decided to take you in hand and make sure you come up to scratch."

"At this point I would take it."

"Aw Ra-Ra."

"Hey, relax. I'm happy for you … and Tony. I really am. Just wish … uh, never mind. Seriously, sounds like things are getting back on track."

"I … I'm not going to worry about it. Right now this is just … reciprocity. You and Frank finally helped me to find my equilibrium. I get to do for you all the time because you let me. And now Frank … well, he isn't exactly letting me but you know what I mean."

Ryan snickered a bit and said, "Poor ol' Frank."

"Hey Goober! Don't say 'old'. I think Frank might be a little sensitive about the age thing."

"I know he is a little sensitive about the age thing. You need to deal with it and so does he before it becomes a real issue and not just an imagined problem. And listen to me jacking all this advice like I actually know what I'm talking about. Look Pug, gotta run, the results I have been waiting on are in. Let me know if you need anything. Bleach, hand sanitizer, face masks …"

"You're impossible," V said laughing as they both made light of Ryan's very real germaphobia. Ryan fought it every day but being around legitimately sick people was just a step over his ability to keep his cool.

Ryan rung off and headed towards the lab but was stopped by Horatio along the way. Natalia was standing there as well.

"Heard anymore about Frank?" Lt. Caine asked.

"Uh … yeah. My cousin is going over there so his kids can go back to Cape Coral without worrying. They go back to school tomorrow is what I understand."

Natalia shook her head. "Someone responsible needs to be keeping an eye on Frank. This isn't just a head cold we're talking about."

Ryan looked at her oddly then said, "Vee is responsible."

"I mean someone that won't panic if there is an emergency, someone that has some medical training."

The odd look slowly turning to confused Ryan told Natalia, "Uh, maybe you don't know but Vee is … okay, at the risk of sounding like I'm bragging or something let me explain a few things. Vee didn't just work overseas because her ex's family gave her the job … she earned it every step of the way. She started working for Porter International before she was sixteen … mostly in supply and procurement. The day of her eighteenth birthday she was off for her first nine-month contract … every year after that she was gone at least nine months of every year in various places around the world; she did this for six years."

"How could you allow her to do something that dangerous when she was so young?" Natalia asked disapprovingly.

"It wasn't my first choice but I wasn't her guardian at that point. Vee got her emancipation at sixteen and took over bossing herself and she did a damn fine job of it until too many things hit her at once. She's back on her feet, it just took a while. As for her qualifications, she's got all sorts of medical training … all the way up to emergency battlefield first aid and triage. She's done it all including things like crowd control and mechanical maintenance. She was being groomed by the Porter family to be their eyes and ears in the field, their representative in sensitive foreign markets. She was already doing that … and it's been a real shock to her pride that people won't take her seriously anymore. And that's primarily because of the smear campaign that the Porter family has done on her. I've come real close to taking legal action a couple of times but Vee just wants to put it all behind her; she's willing to earn her stripes all over again if she has to. Frank's someone she really respects because he's never made her jump through hoops to prove who she is."

Not realizing how she sounded Natalia said, "She should take all of that experience and go to college, get a degree; she'd be more likely to get hired."

Ryan snorted and Horatio tried not to smile since he knew what was coming. "You mean another degree in addition to the bachelor's in chemistry and the MBA she already has?" Natalia's mouth fell slightly open and she just blinked. "She had most of both bachelor's by the time she graduated high school and she finished the MBA online before she was twenty. The idea of going back to school just doesn't thrill her but she has considered it."

That's when Horatio added his two cents in by asking, "She left the last installment of the series on a cliff-hanger. When is the next one coming out?"

Ryan rolled his eyes. "If you think I get a sneak peek think again. All I get to do is read through the final edit before she posts it to Amazon. She combined the first two installments, added a few bells and whistles, and the paper version is going to be out in a couple of months."

"Let me know when the release date is finalized please."

"Sure thing … uh, results are waiting. I'll let you know if I hear anything else," Ryan said before finishing his walk down the hall to the lab.

"Horatio …"

"Natalia, Vee Wolfe is as surprising as Ryan himself can be. You should give her a chance."

"I'm … I'm not …"

Horatio gave her a knowing smile which only made her that much more uncomfortable. Thankfully for her peace of mind, Horatio's phone rang and he re-focused his attention elsewhere.


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

Two days later Frank was finally awake more than he slept, but not much more. The primary difference was when he was awake he actually had the energy to be foul.

"What the hell are you doing?" he asked, finally locating Vee under his car that had been parked in front of his condo.

"Changing your oil. It needed it. I'm also going to do something about that serpentine belt as soon as I determine if it is the belt or the tensioner making that intermittent noise."

"Did I ask you to …" His rant was interrupted by a coughing fit.

"Want some more tea and honey? What about some soup? You hungry yet?"

"No I don't want more damn tea and honey. I'm already sloshing dammit. And I don't want any damn soup like I'm some damn old man with no damn teeth."

Vee sighed and slid out from where she'd been. "You know, you'd get well faster if you wouldn't insist on supervising every little thing I do."

"You're changing my damn oil."

"Grammatical error Hoss. You should actually say 'you're changing my oil dammit', not your damn oil. Makes more of a statement that way."

"I am going to turn you over my knee and …"

Vee interrupted him with the most outrageous thing she was capable of saying that wouldn't reflect just how hacked off she was getting. "Look Hoss, I might just let you do that very thing since it seems to make you so hot and bothered, but not until you get well enough that we can both enjoy it."

Frank just stopped and looked at her before turning and going back inside. Vee sighed thinking that maybe she'd let her temper get the better of her … right when Frank needed her to stay calm, cool, and objective. She stood up and cleaned up as much as she could before going inside and looking for her erstwhile host. She found him the last place she looked; asleep in his bed.

She shook her head and quietly and carefully straightened the sheets at the end of the bed. She realized something at that point and it made her sad. She was never going to be the ideal woman … for anyone. Oh she liked cooking and was even a dab hand at sewing … had to be given that clothes for her were a serious expense … she played a couple of different instruments, loved gardening though she didn't get much of a chance to do it, and all the general yada yada type things that a "lady" was supposed to be proficient in. But there was a flip side to it. She also enjoyed what were stereotypical male pursuits … fishing, sports, hunting, and cars. The things she didn't like were just as important … she didn't like shopping, getting dressed up, showing off her physique (both a female and male pursuit), couldn't stand make up though she dealt with it when she needed to. Most things that both sexes considered "romantic" didn't do a thing for her and in fact made her feel the opposite of what they were apparently supposed to make her feel.

Her Aunt Mary, Ryan's mother, had once told her that she was a "course and common savage" because she absolutely, point-blank, no back up in her refused to dress in an outfit her aunt had picked out for her to attend some social event where her uncle was getting an award. Granted she had gotten hacked off at her aunt's refusal to listen to her own opinions of what was reasonable wear for someone her height and size at the time, and as a result threatened to come decked out in camouflage brown trimmed with fluorescent orange trim, but in all likelihood her aunt was at least partially correct. She was common, was many times course, and could be positively savage when the situation warranted. Why on earth would a man like Frank want that in his woman? She'd not understood how true that was until she'd seen what belongings he considered important in his condo; Frank was classy. From his suits and ties to his taste in music and art to the vacations that were reflected in the photo albums and digital photo frames everything screamed a man who might talk like a Texas cowboy but the life he lived was one of education and general refinement. She bet most people didn't realize it or some woman would have had her way with him before now, divorce' with teenagers or not.

As she often did when she was feeling morose Vee started writing. As a kid she'd filled reams upon reams of paper with her thoughts and stories as she tried to bleed off unhealthy feelings, or work out potential endings to various scenarios. These days she carried around a tablet and Bluetooth keyboard to accomplish the same thing.

A couple of hours later Frank woke up feeling better than he had in days, like his brain matter had finally stopped leaking out of his ears. He washed his face and then went to find out what Vee was getting up to now; re-tiling the bathroom, hanging the solar security lights he never seemed to get around to hanging, building a radio to reach the rest of her kind that lived on the planet Venus. He stopped short when he saw her with her head down at the kitchen table.

"Aw hell," he muttered when he saw the dried tracks of tears through the dirt on her cheeks. He was going to wake her but as his hand brushed the tablet, instead he woke it up. He hadn't really meant to but the first couple of lines caught his eye and he got lost in the story she'd written.

It wasn't a long story but it was poignant. He thought about what he'd read long enough that the sun had begun to set and he'd grown tired again. A loud buzzing startled him. It also startled Vee out of her doze; she sat up suddenly making a grab for her pocket. She blinked in surprise to see Frank sitting beside her but continued to answer her phone. "Hello?"

"Hi! It's Francine … um … Francine Tripp. I'm just calling to check on Dad. He … uh … he isn't answering his phone."

"Actually he is sitting right here. Why don't I give him this phone and I'll go see where his is? It might have gotten lost in the sheets or fallen off his bed or something. I didn't even think to check if it needed charging. Hang on."

Vee quickly handed off her phone, grabbed her tablet, then skedaddled. She made a quick pitstop and then looked for Frank's phone which wasn't misplaced but did need charging. She attached it to the charging base set on his nightstand and then jumped when she backed into Frank who had come to find her. "Do me a favor. Tell the kidlets their old man is fine. Answer their grandmother's questions … I just don't have the energy for her right now. And if that soup is still an offer I wouldn't mind some. Please."

"Uh … sure."

Vee took the phone and talked as she headed to the kitchen as Frank headed towards the bathroom. "Hi."

"Yeah, anyway, Dad sounds better … kinda crudy but better."

"It's the expectorant and decongestant his doctor prescribed. It is to make his coughs more productive to get all of that stuff up out of his chest. We'd need to be more worried if he wasn't coughing crud up."

"So he is really okay?"

"Okay is a relative term. He's where he is supposed to be right now which means he is better. What it doesn't mean is that he is ready to go back to work. Another day or two and he'll probably be able to sit at the computer and do desk work but he won't be out in the field for at least another week, probably closer to two even with the heavy duty antibiotics he is taking."

It was quiet on the other end.

"Something up? Am I not answering your question?"

"No … I guess I just … you really …" Then someone else came on. It was Frankie.

"What Francy is trying to say is that you aren't treating us like little kids and junk. We asked about Dad and you like … I mean you were honest. You didn't dress it up and pretend everything was perfect and happy, happy."

Vee shrugged even though they couldn't see it. "Not much personal experience with 'happy, happy' and I prefer honesty myself. Sorry if I seemed insensitive. That isn't what I meant."

"No … hey no. I mean it's cool to finally have someone that treats us like we aren't two years old and stuff. Dad is usually the one that is totally honest but … lately he's too worried about junk and stuff and thinks maybe Aunt Coral is right, that we're scarred for life."

"Well, you might be. It isn't like the stuff you have had to deal with is all easy and nice. On the other hand my personal take on things like this is it is like breaking a bone. It isn't something you want to do in the grand scheme of things, but if it does happen and once the bone heals, where the break occurred winds up stronger than the surrounding bone that wasn't broken."

Vee heard a third voice. "You really believe that?"

"This is Shelly?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I do believe it though I suppose it might be an oversimplification. You can't just put a cast on your heart or your psyche when it takes a serious hit. On the other hand, there's nothing so bad you can't come back from it … it just takes time and the desire to rebuild that part of yourself that gets broken."

"So … um … like your family died when you were younger than we were."

Vee cringed but since she'd been the one to open the conversation she couldn't blame anyone at herself when they wanted to ask questions. She just didn't want them making too many correlations. "Yeah. I was twelve. And yes, it was a drunk driver."

"Were you really mad at the driver?"

"Yes I was. And the way she acted afterwards didn't help."

"She acted all helpless and stuff I bet."

"Actually she tried to make it all my father's fault. She said he'd been driving erratically and there was no way under any circumstances that she could have avoided hitting us. There were no other witnesses except for my brother and I and he was in ICU. That left me in the hot seat and I wasn't exactly able to act very maturely; I was too young and too upset. In the end it was provable facts that people were forced to accept."

"Uh … provable facts?"

"Yeah … all the physical measurements and formulas used by the traffic investigators with regard to things like distance, force, and velocity; that sort of thing. Only after that were things like the woman's history brought into it. And only after that were people allowed to give testimony about the woman's behavior that night as well as her pervious behavior with regard to drinking considered admissible. A lot of stuff finally came out that should have come out before, if it had maybe my family wouldn't have needed to die for the woman to start taking personal responsibility for her behavior."

"You mean she got better?"

Vee sighed. "I don't know all the details but from what I understand she did come to a crossroad and start making different decisions. But she paid a high price for not doing it sooner. She'll never get another driver's license … at least I doubt she can because she's had her driving privileges permanently revoked in Mississippi. She's uninsurable as far as auto insurance goes even if she could get a license because of the amount of money her insurance company paid out because of the accident … not just what is called the policy limits but a judge put an order that they had to set up a medical trust fund to take care of my brother who couldn't seem to get well and who eventually went into a coma and then into a vegetative state due to his injuries. Her life pretty much fell apart … she got divorced, lost her kids, lost her job, lots of family problems beyond that. However, last year I found out that she's pulled herself together. She doesn't have the life she could have had, and she has some health issues from the years of drinking, but she's better than she was when she hit bottom."

"You think my mom will ever get better?"

"Oh boy, this isn't my place or my business."

"I'm making it your business, or would it be easier just to lie to us like everyone else does."

"I'd never lie … at least not on purpose I don't think. But seriously, I don't know your mother, I don't have all the facts, and it is not my place."

It was Francy that said, "Then give us your opinion. You can do that can't you?"

"Geez, I just hope your dad doesn't come uncorked about me doing this. Do I think your mother has dug herself a deep hole? Yes. From what I understand she's also dealing with some really, really significant physical problems as a result of the accident. Your mom isn't old by any stretch but she's not got a teenager's body anymore either … it is going to take her a lot longer to heal than it would take you three. And the years of using alcohol in an unhealthy way is also going to make the healing process slower. But, if she can get through that, then I think she has a lot going for her so long as she is ready to make the tough decisions. For starters she has you three … you aren't just a responsibility, you're also a blessing and something she can look at for the rest of her life as proof that she did something right. She didn't drink while she was pregnant. Your grandparents, aunt, uncle, and the rest of your family want to be there for her as well."

"Not all of them."

"Eh, you can't have everything. Enough of them will stand with her. And look, I can't speak for your dad but based on the kind of person I've known him to be, he'll do what he can so long as it is healthy for everyone involved, if for no other reason than the fact that she is your mother. There are some things he might be able to do … but being able to do something and that something being what you should do aren't always the same thing. Your mom … she needs professional help and those professionals are going to say that your mom's improvement has to come from inside herself, not from other people doing things for her. You get what I'm trying to say?"

There were two yes and one no. So, while Vee finished fixing Frank some thick minestrone soup she gave them an explanation.


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23

"Okay, let me get a little personal here. A year ago my life was in the toilet. Frankie knows some of it because of some report or other that your Aunt Coral ran on me apparently. Basically my long-time boyfriend … like eight years long-time … turned from Prince Charming into a frog because he kissed too many girls that weren't me. I was seriously injured in a work-related incident overseas. Those two events caused me to lose the job I'd had since I was a kid, the only job I'd ever really thought about having. The worst … my brother … the one I told you … anyway … he died and because of that a family situation got … bad … and people that I'd thought I could trust … I found out they'd just been using me for a paycheck and … and a lot of other nasty stuff went on. I was a mess. Honestly a mess doesn't even come close to describing how bad off I was physically and emotionally. I was at the end of my rope and not all that interested in tying a knot and hanging on. That's when two of my family kinda took me in hand. It took months but finally I was physically healthy and slowly getting a handle on the emotional crap. I didn't get that way however by Ryan and Tony doing everything for me. They encouraged me whether I was down or not, got me to my doctors' appointments when I couldn't drive, worked with me, helped me to design new boundaries for myself, supported me on my first steps into my new reality, would call just to remind me they cared and wanted to know what was going on in my life, would occasionally just show up with a meal or tickets to a movie or something goofy to make sure I didn't become a hermit … so many different ways but neither of them let me get out of being accountable for how I acted or reacted to things. If I was being a butt end neither one of my cousins had a problem telling me so. I didn't always want to hear it but because of all of the other stuff I knew they weren't just being butt headed boy cousins so I could trust them enough to actually listen to what they were saying. Plus, I knew they were coming from some serious life experiences of their own. I'm cruising along … barely cruising but still moving forward … and another traumatic life event happened and I lost someone I had grown really close to. That's how I met your dad. And he has turned out to be a good friend and at some point we may get around to seeing if there is more to it than that, but friendship, trust, and respect definitely comes first. What I'm being so long-winded about is that my cousins, and even your dad, could have made things a lot easier on me by doing everything for me. But in the long run, while that might have been easier, it wouldn't have made me better off … it would have left me weak in areas that I needed to get stronger in. I will never be the person I could have been had my parents lived. I might never have the kind of economic security I had with my old job. I've lost some friends and family forever. But at least these days I can say that even if I lost the chance to be that other person, the person that I am today isn't totally horrible and it is because I've learned to appreciate the areas in my life that were broken but that are now stronger because they healed … because _I_ did what it took to create most of the healing."

There was silence on the other end and Vee nearly fainted with embarrassment when an older woman's voice said, "Thank you Dear. Your explanation helped me to clarify a few things. I just hope my daughter can … can …" She cleared her throat. "I hope my daughter makes the best of what opportunities and support that come her way."

"I think we'll all say a prayer for that and maybe I should just back out of this conversation before I overstep my bounds. Not to mention I need to get this soup to Frank. He's finally ready for something with some substance to it. It's minestrone but one that isn't too spicy."

Luckily for Vee the people on the other end of the phone connection allowed her to end things gracefully and she turned only to find that Frank was sitting at the table.


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24

"Oh geez, how long have you been sitting there?!"

"Long enough. I think I have a box of crackers in that cabinet," he said

"Uh, sure … but I made fresh breadsticks earlier. You nose is stuffy so you probably couldn't smell them."

"Fresh … bread …" Frank said with a glazed over look, like a zombie would say brainzzzz.

Vee gave a small grin and then put everything in front of him as well as a glass of tea and then turned to leave.

"Where're you going?"

"Laundry."

"You aren't the maid."

Vee snorted and said, "I don't feel like a maid."

"Then sit."

Vee mentally shrugged and decided to avoid the argument and simply do things when he went back to bed and went to sleep.

"Aren't you going to eat?"

"I ate earlier."

"When earlier?"

"Earlier … I don't know … before I started on your car."

Frank put his spoon down. "That was hours ago. The sun was still up. That is called day. If you will notice the sun is no longer in the sky. That is called night. In all that time …"

"Frank, enough. I'll grab something just stop already. I don't mean to make you feel like you can't eat."

"That's not what I'm saying."

"But that's still the end result and you need to eat so you can build your stamina back up. In the morning I'll make you a decent breakfast now that you don't have a fever to wreck your stomach up." She stood and grabbed a coffee cup and it looked like she was putting a ladle of soup in there to eat but Frank noticed she didn't sit back down so he was fairly certain there wasn't as much in the mug as someone was meant to think.

He didn't know how to breach the subject he wanted to talk about without revealing that he'd read her personal computer file. He still hadn't figured it out when his phone went off and they could hear it from the bedroom. Vee hurried to get it. He heard her say, "Sgt. Tripp's residence. Oh hello Lt. Caine, one moment please."

 **Frank already had his hand out when she walked into the kitchen. Vee gave them some privacy and retreated to the utility room where she put another load of sheets into the washer, then taking out towels from the dryer. She had just finished folding the towels when Frank walked into the small space. It left her no place to retreat.**

 **"** **We need to talk. I'm tired and feel like crap but we still need to talk. I … I feel like something is getting away from me."**

 **"** **Frank?"**

 **"** **Look, you mind if we do this in the living room?"**

 **"** **Did you finish eating?"**

 **"** **Yeah. You … uh … you cook good."**

 **Vee snorted. "The women in my family don't accept the fact that some people are meant to cook and some aren't. It is like a coach that thinks a player is underperforming on purpose … you'll do laps until the attitude gets adjusted … or else. And if you are female the word 'proficient' at cooking has a completely different meaning than most people would think. Not to mention it helps save the budget and the hip measurement; I'm wide enough just from being tall, I don't need …"**

 **"** **That," he snapped. "Stop doing that."**

 **"** **Doing what?"**

 **"** **There is nothing wrong with the way you look or how you are built. Do you make fun of me because I'm tall?"**

 **"** **Guys are supposed to be …"**

 **Frank once again order her to, "Stop." He shook his head in frustration. "There is no 'supposed to be'. Would you joke about a guy who is short? Do you make fun of Ryan because he is a couple of inches shorter than you?"**

 **"** **No! Of course I don't."**

 **"** **Then stop doing it to yourself. You aren't a comedian trying to get a laugh out of the audience. You're with me and I like you just fine the way you are. And if anyone else thinks they can say a thing about it they are going to get re-educated."**

 **Frank was getting pale and Vee felt guilty. "Sorry … old habit."**

 **"** **Bad habit. Don't do it. You ready to sit down?"**

 **"** **Sure," she capitulated.**

Frank led her to the living room. It was Spartan and only had a recliner, a coffee table and end table set, and a futon he kept for when one of the kids stayed over which hadn't been often once Frankie started high school. Everything in the room was of good quality but not ostentatious. He usually took the kids someplace and they stayed in a hotel or something similar.

Frank mumbled, "Wish we had your sofa here."

"This is fine."

"No it isn't. I … I just got to where I didn't care. I don't sit around this place any more than I can help. If I have to be alone I prefer being alone out on the boat."

Vee knew he had just shared something with her that he probably didn't admit to many people. She was trying to figure out how to respond when he kept talking.

"I'm in no shape to treat you right," he told her. "If I was, at least this would feel easier."

"What? Having me around? It doesn't bother me Frank. I like doing for you."

"That's only part of it. I've gotten out of the … out of the habit of there being someone in my life. At least the kind I'm talking about."

Vee said, "I'm here now."

"Yes you are … and I'm having to … to figure out what that means." He wouldn't look at her for a moment then he said, "You know I have nearly 20 years on you. That's a big gap. You're younger than Melissa was when we started dating and there's been a lot of water go under that bridge since then. In twenty years I'm going to be approaching retirement and you're just going to be hitting your prime. Do you understand what that could mean?"

"It just means we'll be twenty years down the road from where we are today; you'll be thinking of retiring or changing careers and I'll be trying to figure out what it means to be a woman going into menopause and experiencing the realities of gravity. You'll be retiring in one way and I'll be retiring in another."

Frank was startled by her answer and when he tried to draw a breath he started coughing and took a moment to stop. Vee sighed. "Sorry. Maybe I better state the obvious here … my mouth is a lethal weapon that I keep forgetting to put the safety on. I've always been like this. No matter my intentions I'll probably always be like this. If you want to keep me around you should apply for hazardous duty pay or something."

Frank was still breathing hard but he turned a sharp eye on her. "What did I say about that bad habit."

"It's the truth Frank. And it isn't funny. Maybe sometimes the things I say make people laugh but I don't set out to make people laugh … at least most of the time. It is just me being me. I'm … I'm not the most feminine, ladylike female on the planet and I'm not just talking about my physical stats."

"Ladylike has its pros and cons. I've met so-called ladylike women that made me want to run screaming in the opposite direction of wherever they are. Melissa's mother was like that. She's loosened up some but holy hell she used to drive me bug shit. As far as feminine goes, you get any more feminine and I'm going to have a hard time walking straight … and so will you with all the time I try and keep you in bed."

"Frank!"

"See, that works both ways."

"That's … that's …"

"Just the way we are. I can't ask you to accept me the way I am if I'm not willing to accept you the way you are. I probably wouldn't even be attracted to you if you weren't the way you are. I was over the sensitive, toothpick-girl type before I got to be Frankie's age."

"No high maintenance drama queens in your past?" Vee asked with grin, trying to get him to smile.

Instead Frank shuddered. "Melissa wore me out. She wasn't like that when we got married, or at least not often. She … she was the type that liked to package it up and put it on display but at the same time she had a level head and knew where to draw the line. But somewhere along the way …" Frank shuddered again and Vee put her hand on his arm.

"Sorry. Didn't mean to bring up bad memories."

Hesitantly Frank said, "They aren't all bad memories. We wouldn't have stuck it out eight and a half years if they were. Hell, you just got off the phone with three of the best memories. But, here's the thing … I can't go through that again. I don't care what kind of damn package it comes in, or what kind of perks are offered. My guts were in a knot all the time. Felt like I was being carved up from the inside out. Getting divorced was damn hard. Admitting that I had failed was damn hard. Being separated from the kids has been damn hard. I'm tired of damn hard … but I still seem to be failing."

"Where? I don't see it. Your kids love you and they know they come first and always will. The people at work trust your skill and your friendship. You …"

"With you hard head. I'm failing with you."

Vee just blinked at him. "Uh …"

"I see the possibilities but you're slipping away."

Vee sighed sadly. "Frank, for what it's worth, even with your so-called failures you still are more successful than I've ever been. I have absolutely no clue what I'm doing. I thought I did with Rob. I thought I had it all figured out. Now here you are … oh my gosh. Look Frank, I'll say it and if I look like a fool, I look like a fool. I just hope I'm not being a damn fool." Vee licked her lips and let it out. "I'm here. I have no plans to go anyplace. I'm willing to wait. It doesn't matter how long. Just … just … keep telling me to wait, what you want. I'll just take it one day at a time. I can be satisfied with that. I still trust this limbo with you more than what I had with Rob."

"See, that's the problem woman. You say you are willing to wait. I see you waiting around and wonder what in the hell right I have to ask you to wait because I have no damn idea how long this disaster is going to take to wind up."

Vee said, "In some respect it may never 'wind up.' You'll just get to a level where you can keep all the balls in the air you need to. My brother being dead is never going to change. My economic reality might change but if I'm realistic it won't be anytime soon. And along with that comes the hassles that the Porter family are unlikely to stop causing me. I made some calls."

"What kinda calls?" Frank asked trying not to show how perplexed he was by the sudden change in topic.

"The kinda calls I sometimes had to make when I was a contractor and needed to get things done in a more timely manner than was occurring."

Hearing what she wasn't saying he said, "And?"

"I need to apologize. I never thought the Porters would make things so personal. Yeah, I get their reasons for refusing to give me a good reference for a job but what someone did this time was over the line."

"Explain it to me."

"Based on some feedback I've gotten I figured a few things out. I've had eyes on me for a while. Nothing too serious or I would have spotted them, but apparently I was crawling up out of the gutter they'd tried to kick me into a little too far. Your ex-sister in law is just the kind of person they find easy to manipulate. They fed her intel and made sure it was spun the way they wanted. Then they nudged her and she used it against you. That's the part that hacked me off. Had it just been me I would have let it go. But they dragged your kids into it and that is not going to happen again."

A little concerned Frank asked, "Vee … what did you do?"

"Let's just say I paid attention to what I wasn't exactly supposed to hear and that I know people that know people that know where things are buried … valuable things. Things that other people also find valuable. Some of those valuable things are documents. Some of those valuable things are contacts. Some of those valuable things are simply valuable things … but things that didn't exactly come into the country through regular channels shall we say. Nothing can be traced directly back to me and I didn't only use one source to convey this information to people who appreciate it. But Mr. Porter Sr. is no dummy. He is going to wonder what happened to 'cause the kind of trouble that I've set in motion. He'll find out. I've made sure he'll find out. And since he is the one that taught me the tricks of my former trade, he'll understand the message is to back off, not that I'm out to become an enemy, I only want to be left alone. His public face will still be set against me … but behind closed doors he is going to knock the holy living snot out of whoever poked this bear. Nobody messes with my family."

Then Vee flinched realizing that last part sounded like she was making assumptions she didn't have any business making.


	25. Chapter 25

Chapter 25

Frank wouldn't let it slide. "Your family?"

"Okay, your family. That better?"

"No. I like the other way you said it better."

Vee looked at Frank, got more than just a little pink, and then stammered, "Oh."

"Yes 'oh'. And if I wasn't worried about being contagious I'd do my damnedest to show you just how much better I like it."

"Frank, you're getting pale. You really do need to get some rest."

Sighing in frustration and resignation he admitted, "I know. I'm starting to lose track of what I mean to say."

"It can wait. Like I said, I'm not going anywhere."

"Yeah you are. To work tomorrow."

"Actually, no. The City has extended the street-side closure of the marina because of another party-boat accident. Idiots keep trying to moor in the gap between Syd's place and the yacht club to get to the resorts that are across the street. There were two more near drownings today. Syd told me it might be another two weeks before he calls me back in. He was worried I was going to quit until I told him I'd find work until I got his call."

"What kinda work?"

Wondering what was up with all the questions Vee nevertheless answered him. "The dat blasted trust attorney won't leave me alone and I suppose he's right. I turn twenty-five next week and all the legal mumbo jumbo …"

"Wait … your birthday is next week? Why the hell haven't you said anything?!"

"Because … I guess … look, I guess I forget how people can be about their birthdays but after I got my emancipation they stopped meaning that much to me. They are just a date on the calendar."

"What about Jackass?"

Rolling her eyes at how Frank had adopted Ryan's name for Rob she explained, "I've always been out of the country for my birthday. His too for that matter. It's just never been an issue. Nine times out of ten I forget about it until someone brings it up."

"Ryan the same way about his birthday?"

Vee shrugged. "He and Tony are middle of the road about that sort of stuff. Usually if it comes up all they ever ask for is my mother's blackberry jam cake with caramel icing. That's all they usually want for Christmas too." Then Vee gave a small grin. "They both have their own brand of OCD and I'm one of the few that they'll eat what I fix sight unseen. Usually to eat something without activating their gag reflex they have to watch the food being cooked."

"Yeah, people leaving food in the breakroom drives Ryan crazy. You better put your name and a date on whatever you put in the frig or he'll toss it out."

"Tony is worse. It drives the other people in the studio bonkers."

"Studio? What does your other cousin do?"

Vee looked to see if he was serious and then realized she'd been assuming that Ryan had mentioned it. "Uh … Tony's last name is Vaccaro."

"Yeah … wait … Tony Vaccaro is your cousin?!"

"Sorry. Thought Ryan had said something."

"Sweetheart, it was almost like Ryan was hatched from an egg as little as he talked about his family until we found out about you. How the hell am I supposed to know he's cousins with one of the leading college sports commentators? They called him Invincible Vaccaro before that baseball dropped him like a rock."

"We used to call him Testosterone Tony … and that bean ball didn't just end his baseball career, it almost ended his life. He still has to get regular brain scans because of the migraines he's been left with."

"Damn … I didn't know."

"It isn't common knowledge and he hasn't let it stop him. He's getting re-married next month. Cheryl is cool but we don't get to see them as much as we used to since he took the job with the College Sports Network. But it was the right choice for them; opens a lot of potential for the future."

"Hell yeah it does. Damn …"

"Er …"

"Don't worry Sweetheart, just caught me off guard. He'll just stay your cousin Tony."

Relieved, Vee said, "Thanks. And I think that is about all the excitement you need. You're not just pale you're getting that funky grey color again. Let me get you a glass of water and the horse pills and you go crash and burn for the night."

With grumbling that didn't have all that much energy to it Frank took his medicine and then went towards his room … but he did it towing Vee behind him.

"Frank."

"Dammit, you can at least let me pretend I'm not a weak and helpless …"

"The last thing you are is helpless and the weak part is only temporary."

"Fine. But at least lay with me until these damn pills kick in."

Vee decided she could do that. Except instead of getting back up like she'd intended she wound up having one of the better night's sleep she'd had in a while … she didn't even dream about explosions or having to help fill the body bags that held what was left of her friends.


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter 26

Two weeks later Frank wondered if he could pretend he was having a relapse and hide out until he figured out how to get off the damn roller coaster his life had turned into. Dammit all this was worse than when he had been married to the woman.

For two weeks, two solid weeks, things had started to smooth out. The lawyer started handling all of Melissa's stuff so he didn't have to. The kids were coming to terms with things and had settled back in at their old school with teachers and friends that were glad to have them. And shock of all shocks they weren't blaming him for all the crap that was disrupting their lives; they actually acted like they were worried about him though he wasn't sure how long it would last. He wasn't getting calls every five minutes from family or work. And he'd had Vee's full and undivided attention. They hadn't done much physically with their alone time but still, she was there and willing to do whatever he asked of her. Except she'd squawk a little bit when he got more personal than she expected. Like the time he woke up, went hunting for her, and found her waxing her legs. She'd wanted to stop or for him to give her some privacy but eventually she settled down after giving him a strange look when he insisted he wanted to watch.

"Damn Girl, those are some long legs. They're gorgeous … but you're about to freeze me to pieces with them waxing whatchamacallits."

"Strips. Waxing strips. And I gave up razors when I was eighteen and some village women showed me how to get rid of body hair without the risk of opening an artery. Overseas it was safer to wax also because of infections from untreated water and all of that garbage. Here in the States I keep doing it because it lasts longer and is way cheaper. You know how many razors I went through when I was shaving my legs? And I couldn't use the cheap disposable ones either or I would wind up with the Marquis de Sade's version of razor rash."

She'd offered to wax his beard but there was no way in hell. When she laughed and asked about giving him a Brazilian wax job he threatened to lock her up for threatening a police officer with torture. She'd giggled long and hard and it had been worth the embarrassment to see her so happy and carefree. It wasn't often that she was.

Yesterday had been his first day back at work … or at least back at the precinct. He'd done a little paperwork from home but primarily on cold cases. He'd even made a little headway on a couple of them. Yesterday had kicked his butt and that was on top of having to play the twenty-question game when people were trying to pry into his personal life.

He'd gotten home to find that Vee had packed up her stuff. He'd been tempted to ask her to move in but after thinking about it he knew neither of them were ready for it. Syd had also called her to come back which is where she had spent today. Cleaning up from the last of the Spring Break crowd.

What had him so hacked off at the moment wasn't that he had to go back to work; hell he needed to. It wasn't that Vee had to go back to work. He knew how much she valued that bit of her independence. It wasn't even that their break was over because reality was bound to intrude at some point. It's that while he'd been prepared for all of that … a call from Melissa's father had caught him broadside and he was drowning in drama yet again.

He pulled into his parking spot in front of his condo only to back right back out and head over to Vee's apartment. Thankfully she was home as evidenced by the Coupe being where it was supposed to be. He didn't have the energy to bound up the stairs but he decided if he had to crawl he would. He knocked but barely gave her time to answer before he was pushing her door open and stepping inside. He grabbed her and pulled her to him tight and muttered into her hair, "You're mine. Mine. I am not losing this. I am not going to let her take this from me. Jesus, I might owe her something but not my soul."

"Frank?" Vee asked, her voice muffled from where she was smushed against the man's shirt.

"I gotta stay here tonight. I can't stay there by myself. Not tonight. I just … I just need …"

"Hey, reciprocity remember? You hosted me for two weeks, now I get to do for you at least for tonight. Sounds like a fair exchange would you …" Vee nearly yelped when Frank took them both down to the floor.

"You're mine woman. Understand? I know things are going to get crazy but you're mine. You said you'd wait."

Vee knew right then that something more had happened … and not a good kind of more. She murmured assurances and rubbed Frank's back and after a few moments she felt him relax a little right before snarling an f-bomb.

"What a shit day this has been."

"Wanna talk or go beat something to pieces in the gym?"

"I wanna beer … or some scotch."

"Sorry, fresh out. I suppose I can …"

"No. I said I want one. Didn't say I should have one. You sure don't need to run out and get me something. No way in hell am I going to start that shit. I lived through it once, not happening a second time." Frank rubbed his forehead like he was getting a migraine before saying, "Wouldn't say no to some iced tea if you have any made."

"I have that or I can make you some butterscotch milk if your stomach is full of acid."

Frank thought about it then shook his head. "The tea. That warm milk stuff you make puts me to sleep and … and I need to … talk. Need … need … you … need you to understand what is going on."

For Frank to actually say it told her even more that something not-good had happened.

She came back with the glass of sweet iced tea to find he'd taken off his coat and tie and was sprawled on the sofa. "Have I told you I love this sofa?"

"A few times," she answered trying to keep things light until he was ready to actually do the talking he'd claimed he needed to do.

Finally he sighed. "Day started out I got called to a scene. Good lord. I pull up and Ryan looks like he is about to puke … give him a day and if he hasn't called you then you might want to call him to see how he is dealing. Anyway, I know it's bad but they hadn't said anything about a body so I check the look in Ryan's eyes and just dammit all, I knew it had to be a kid and it had to be bad. I look over and see a guy cuffed and in the back of a cruiser. Things ain't looking good. I go inside and find the worthless piece of crap baby momma getting sobered up before she gets hauled off just like her boyfriend. Grandmother is in another room barely holding it together. Paramedics … Vee, I don't have any business adding to your nightmares."

"Shhhhh … you forget what parts of the world that I worked in for a while. People don't value human life the way they do here in the states. Just say what you need to say to bleed it off."

"It was a little girl … six years old. Six. Six freaking years old. They got the bleeding under control but I heard they were hours doing reconstructive surgery once they stabilized her enough to get her through surgery. I hope they put those freaks in general pop. Damn, sometimes rough justice seems like the best justice."

Frank's head wound up in Vee's lap and she just wiped the sweat from his brow and tried her best to comfort him. She'd seen worse. She wouldn't tell him that but she'd never forget helping the woman to try and bury what was left of her only daughter with some dignity after she'd been gang raped and all but torn to pieces because they'd had no male strong enough to defend them from the roaming gangs of young refugees that had flooded their town.

"I spent the rest of the morning filling out paperwork. Cases like that … they depress everyone, not just the people who work it, so no one was in a good mood. Nothing goes right. Everyone snapping and back biting. Perps and witnesses even seemed to be in a pissy mood. Things finally started to let up a little after lunch when we got word the little girl was going to live. About an hour later I get an emergency text from Melissa's father. He had come to the hospital at the request of her primary doctor. Aw shit."

Vee undoes the top couple of buttons on Frank's dress shirt and starts to rub his neck when he sits up.

"There were some irregularities in some of Melissa's tests. Her primary called in a neurologist." Vee cringed, waiting for the shoe to drop. "They ran some scans and they're pretty sure she has brain damage. And not just from the accident. She has what they call a localized brain bruise or something like that from the impact during the accident. They thought that was affecting some of her fine motor skills; it was in the right location. But she was also exhibiting some cognitive … uh … can't remember exactly except that they noticed she was off and since she hadn't had a drunk on at the time they had done a few additional scans that looked for other things. She's got early stage Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome."

"Wet brain syndrome."

Surprised Frank asked, "You know what that is?"

"Yeah, you see it a lot in cultures where there is a lot of heavy drinking from a young age; or, in backwater work hells where the men drink more than they eat 'cause they're lonely … or what have you. It is caused by B1 thiamine deficiency … alcohol can damage the digestive track so that absorption is compromised. Sometimes alcoholics fill up on … er … liquids and forget to actually eat a balanced meal of solid food."

Frank nodded. "You know what it does?"

"It damages the parts of the brain that can lead to ataxia, dementia, hallucinations, inability to tell truth from fiction …"

Frank said, "Yeah. It was that ataxia …"

"An irregular gate."

"Yeah. A physical therapist caught it and reported it, suspecting it wasn't caused by nerve damage in her foot. Her old man was a mess. Dan is in Tallahassee at some conference, he didn't know who else he could call. Sure as hell Coral would only make things worse. I've done what I could but, damn I'm getting sucked back in."

"No, you're just being an advocate for your kids and this is what it takes. Melissa's family is going to have to deal with the reality she built for herself. Have you talked to the kids yet?"

"Yeah, it wasn't pretty but the older two took it better than I expected. Shelly could only cry. Dan's wife's sister is a nurse at a rehab center over in Cape Coral and knows the family. She went over to try and help answer as many questions as she can. The kids' counselor is on board. Dan will be back in the morning and he'll drive back over with his father who is staying at his place tonight. I got a hold of Melissa's lawyer and he'll deal with how this affects the legal stuff. Damn, damn, damn, damn, damn."

After a few more moments Vee got up and helped Frank to lean back on the sofa. "Drink some tea. The sweat will help a little with the shakes. I'm going to turn the bed down and make sure everything is locked up."

"Huh?"

"Been a long day Frank. You're still recovering and this is another nasty shock. And I need to just hold you and … and … do whatever it is that we wind up doing; I need to give you whatever you'll allow me to. Best place to do that is bed. Just give me a moment."

"You gonna call Ryan?"

"Text him so he doesn't just bang on through the door if the date he is on tonight tanks out."

"Date huh."

"Yeah. Well, maybe not a date exactly. He and that woman Natalia are going to catch a concert down at the waterfront."

"He and Natalia … er …"

"Yeah. I know about the 'er' and it doesn't thrill me to see him going back around. Ryan has a bad habit of sticking with the known even though the known comes with painful memories. But I suppose Natalia is still better than Lily who has been riding his case about like The Cougar has."

Frank already knew who "The Cougar" and Lily were and agreed that anything would be better than those two. He just didn't see a lot of hope for Ryan where Natalia was concerned. She was a woman that seemed to run hot and then cold at unpredictable intervals.


	27. Chapter 27

Chapter 27

Natalia asked, "Was that your cousin?"

"Yeah. Sorry. Her and work are the only two reasons I would have taken the call," he answered her as he sat back down in the lawn chair Natalia had told him to bring with him.

Natalia nodded. "No, I understand. Is everything ok?"

"Yes … well no … I mean …" He stopped the nervous chatter and took a calming breath. "Vee is fine. Frank is over at her place. He got some more bad news about his ex-wife and she was warning me off using my key and barging in if I dropped by tonight."

"Tonight?"

"Uh … at the risk of sounding like an ass … I respect you more than to assume going to a concert together means anything other than going to a concert together."

Natalia blink and then gave a surprised, "Oh."

Nervously Ryan asked, "I didn't insult you or anything did I because I meant the exact opposite."

Finally Natalia relaxed and gave him a smile. "I'm actually flattered. You sure things are okay?"

"Vee has it under control. She and Frank are good together. I know that sounds weird but you have to see them to understand. Of course probably around people at work they'd both shut up and it would be like prying the truth out of J. Edgar Hoover to get them to talk." He winced. "Aw man, now they have me doing it."

Natalia gave a sympathetic laugh and they both turned their attention to the set that was just starting.

# # # # # # # # # #

Frank was asleep and Vee was drifting that direction. She felt guilty for feeling so amazing while the world of those she cared about was so topsy-turvy but at the same time she was ready, willing, and able to tell the rest of the world to go to hell if they tried to take it from her. Sure, she knew that was selfish, but she'd decided she was going to fight to keep whatever it was that was going on between her and Frank … or at least fight to give it a chance.

Frank. He was amazing. Men like him are only supposed to exist in story books or in the movies, or so say all the women she'd known since she was old enough to understand such concepts. The things he did to her, the things he made her feel … words just weren't equal to the job of describing it adequately. His hands, his mouth, every part of him that touched her … if she didn't stop thinking about it she'd never get any sleep. But it wasn't just the physical sensations of the things he did … the things he got her to do … it was how he made her feel. He made her want to give back tenfold of what he was giving to her only before she could he was already giving her back a hundredfold from what little she'd given to him; back and forth until there was no he giving and she giving but they were giving at the same time and that just absolutely rocked her world, her mind, her soul, showing her the reality of every color in creation, the sound of every musical note, the nuance of every story, every emotion. And she was scared that she was going to wake up and it would be over with and she'd be left with nothing, less than nothing because she'd already experienced everything with nothing more to look forward to.

She knew what she wanted … she wanted eternity with this man that had shown her so much in such a short period of time. She knew she didn't have it, couldn't have it. He already had so many commitments, so many responsibilities. But maybe she could make what she did have enough. She prayed she could. She prayed that there was enough time to make sure when it was over with and he left her that Frank never regretted giving her his time and attention … and that he knew that she'd done the same to him, that she'd given him everything she had, and she prayed that would be enough. Maybe … just maybe … if she was careful … he'd stay her friend and there would be a little bit of something left to look forward to after all.

# # # # # # # # # #

Eric rejoiced in the lingering kiss he shared with Calleigh. "I miss you like crazy."

"And I miss you. But …"

"Shhh. I know. The kids are still adjusting. They … they didn't seem so nervous having me around this time."

"No they didn't. I think that shows they're less worried that I'm going to lose interest in them and they'll be left alone again. Even their counselor has said they are making great progress considering what they've had to deal with."

Eric shook his head. "Poor kids. Look, maybe next time we can go out … I don't know … do the family thing, let them get used to seeing us – all four of us – as a team. We can make it something the kids will enjoy even if it is just a park or something low-key."

"You know, I think that would be perfect. We could maybe even stop by and see your mom."

Eric chuckled and told her, "I said low-key remember? My mom … she's all over me to bring the kids over. She's dying to meet them. I think she plans on making up for all the time they didn't have an Abuela."

"I love your Mom and you know it. And so will the kids."

"Yeah. And I'm grateful … after Marisol … but anyway, if it was just Mom I wouldn't have a problem with it but there's going to be a bunch of family over and I definitely think it will be too much for them. Not that I don't want to. Just …"

"Will you stop it? I trust you. And you're probably right. I just miss seeing your Mom. I … I miss all of it Eric."

"But you're right … about us slowing down … or at least not speeding up … until the kids are doing better. I mean they're great now but … I think I still scare them a little bit or something."

"Will you stop that? They loved that you helped them with their lines in the school play. And they were excited when you came to watch them both." Calleigh laughed quietly.

Looking a little insecure Eric mumbled, "Austin thinks I'm a wuss because my troll growl wasn't very trollish … he said I sounded like a puppy."

"He does not," she denied still smiling. "At least as soon as the little dickens overheard us talking that you were worried about scaring Patty he completely understood. You heard him constantly reminding Patty that it was just a play and that you were more scared of her than she was of you." She dissolved into quiet giggles remembering the look on Eric's face the first time Austin had said it.

"Thanks Cal. Thanks a lot," but contrary to his words Eric was smiling. Then he reached out and tucked a lock of hair behind Calleigh's ear. "You have an early day tomorrow and the kids need to go down for the night."

Calleigh said, "You're right … but not for a few more minutes." She then pulled Eric's head down to hers and they erased some of their loneliness for each other one more time.

# # # # # # # # # #

Natalia watched Ryan walk to his car after making sure that she got safely to hers. She could call him back. She knew he'd come. She knew she could ask him over … and knew that he'd agree to whatever she wanted. She knew she was quite capable of managing Ryan Wolfe … but she also knew it wouldn't be fair. Guys like Ryan … never mind. It had been nice to get out and have some fun, even if it was just platonic. As she drove home she realized that platonic is probably what she needed, at least for a while. Anything other than platonic had a bad habit of getting messy and time consuming. Yeah, platonic was what she needed … but as the automatic garage door opened and she drove in and planned to stay home for the remainder of the night she was honest enough to admit, platonic wasn't really what she wanted, at least not tonight. Dammit, why hadn't she invited Ryan over?

# # # # # # # # # #

Walter Simmons was sitting on the bleachers watching the next game of four on four on the court. He was also trying not to listen to his mother nag him.

"You're not getting any younger boy … and neither am I. Your sisters have all given me granbabies to love on. What is the hold up? I thought once you took a day job you'd stop all this foolishness. Now you listen to your momma …"

God he missed Jesse. Jesse would have understood and gotten him to laugh it off. Maybe he did use his male friendships to avoid taking necessary chances. But honestly, it was his nieces and nephews that had convinced him he wasn't ready for that kind of responsibility. He had time. But it sucked being the only son and that's a fact. Man, he wished they'd just get off his back already. He was young, he just wanted to be free and play for a while yet.

Then something his mother had said caught his attention again. "What did you say Mom?"

"Don't take that tone with me young man. You'll come to dinner and you'll meet the girl just like I told you. She's Marietta's niece. Granted she may not be top drawer but you aren't exactly top drawer yourself. And for heaven's sake, don't wear them baggy ol' jeans you wear every time you come over. Surely you don't dress that way for work. Show you got some self-respect. Are you listening to me boy?"

Walter nearly groaned. He should never have answered the phone. She got him every time. Now she's trying to arrange his love life. God help him if any of the guys ever found out. He'd never live it down.

# # # # # # # # # #

Horatio took the microwave dinner out and peeled back the plastic. The smell nearly had him dumping it in the trash in favor of the all liquid diet that tempted him from the small stocked bar he kept for the few times he couldn't keep the nightmares at bay. Those nights came less and less but that wasn't much comfort. Because at least in the nightmares he was with Marisol again.

He'd made peace of a sort with Marisol's ghost. He'd been willing to just finally let go and be with her but she convinced him that he still had a reason for living … one of them at the time had been rescuing Natalia Boa Vista. It had been so easy to believe that when he was with her … that life still had meaning. He knew she would not want him to feel the way he feels but that doesn't stop the feelings from being nearly overwhelming at times. Dear God, what his life would be if he hadn't unexpectedly discovered he had a son and been able to build a relationship with him. But Kyle was a grown man now, and a world away serving his country.

Marisol had been his refuge. Kyle became his reason for going on when that refuge had been ripped from him. With both now gone, how did he reinvent himself yet again? Was it even worth it anymore?


	28. Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Vee was lining brown bags and carafes of morning brew on the kitchen counter. Over her shoulder she told Frank, "Breakfast to go … and here's some lunch. It's just a meatloaf sandwich and some side fixings but …" Vee shrugged then pointed to another brown bag on the table she asked, "And can you toss this one to Ra-Ra when you see him? He loves meatloaf sandwiches and maybe it will put him in a mood to call me and I can ask him how he is doing after the case yesterday without having to act like I'm checking up on him."

Frank listened to Vee rattle on while he stood there forcing himself to tie his damn tie when what he really felt like doing was metaphorically hanging himself with it. He was still processing that she'd gotten up early to wash, dry, and press his shirt and tie since he hadn't had a spare set in his car. He'd forgotten to put spares in his trunk after being out of the habit for two weeks. Dammit, another thing on his to do list that he let slip. What the hell was wrong with him? He knew what was wrong with him … he was getting old. He liked Vee's old-fashioned streak but he didn't like how guilty … and old … it sometimes made him feel. Dammit all. All he wanted was to drag her back to bed. Freaking dirty old man, that's all he was. What the hell is he thinking dragging her into the insane asylum his life had become? Being a cop was hard enough, but the rest of this on top of it? What the hell did he have to offer a young woman like her?

Vee noticed the mood he was falling into and brushed his hands away and straightened the mangled mess he'd made.

He grouched, "You don't need to do all this. I've told you already, you're not my damn maid."

"Good because I've yet to find one of those little French maid outfits that I can squeeze into."

Momentarily distracted Frank asked, "Do I want to know what in the hell you were doing looking for one of those outfits?"

"Not really," she chuckled. "But I'll tell you anyway. There was this big to do we were running security for in Belize. Turns out our crew was a man down so they had to bring me in. The problem was all the women were dressed … never mind. I wound up dressed in a tux and getting some really strange looks."

"That's not funny."

"Relax Frank. It was a job and I think Spicoli … he was my team leader … wasn't too happy and that sort of thing never happened again. He preferred running two men short than trying to make an even number by adding me in."

"It still isn't funny."

"Frank … it kinda was. But I guess you had to be there. Even if I had found a maid outfit to fit there was no place to hide my tactical weapon of the day. The look on the men's faces was pretty hilarious when I brought that fact up. Spicoli looked like he was going to swallow his teeth."

Frank shook his head at Vee's sometimes odd way of looking at things considered reminding her of bad habits he wanted her to stop. Instead he said, "This day is going to suck."

"But it won't suck as bad as yesterday," Vee told him.

"And just how in the hell do you know that?" he grouched in response.

She leans in and answers, "Because every … single … time … the world starts caving in, and you start drowning in suckage, you think about the fact that I'll be here waiting for you to call me in to lend a hand, even if it is just to listen. There's nothing you have to bare alone. Yesterday was awful and sucked more than it needed to. But now you'll remember … you're not alone." Her large and capable hand cupped one of Franks cheeks. "You're an amazing man. You're there for your kids. You're there for the victims. You're there for the people you work with. Maybe others don't appreciate that as much as they should but I see it and I know. And when all of that is said and done, here's something for you to remember; I'm there for you. That's the way it is. Doesn't matter how long … forever if you need it. I'm there for you. I'm big. I'm strong. I can take it. And I want you to never forget that … no matter what."

"Hell … isn't that what I'm supposed to be telling you?"

Vee looked momentarily surprised before saying, "Tell me? Geez Frank, all you've done from the moment I met you is show me. I've used your shoulders for some relief and now you're going to let me reciprocate. That's the way it is supposed to be. One of these days you'll get to the point you realize you don't really need me because you got along just fine before I came along … but until then please let me do what I can, do what I know how to do best. I'm support staff through and through. Let me be your support. It may not be much support in the grand scheme considering all you do but hopefully it will be just enough."

Frank took her into his arms, not as desperately as he had last night but still she could feel his wanting like a physical thing. Then he told her in no uncertain terms, "Your mine."

"Absolutely."

"No one ever better think otherwise."

"Better not," she agreed. "Or they're going to get re-educated. And I bet it'll be a race which one of us dishes the re-educating first."

That brought a small smile to his face. "Damn you're a hell-cat."

"Only for you," she told him huskily. "Otherwise I'm a boring, vanilla kinda girl. You saw that last night."

Frank jerked back from where he'd been about to fall into her eyes. "Okay, none of that. I gotta be able to think straight."

"And here I was thinking you'd be wondering whether you were going to be able to walk straight."

Outraged yet appreciative of what she was trying to do he groused, "Dammit woman!"

Vee giggled and then laughed out loud. "Oh geez Frank. Thank you … thank you …"

"For what?" he asked, looking at her like she was slightly off her rocker in a good way.

"Just for being you. Now grab your breakfast, grab your lunch, and let's get out of here before I'm the one that isn't going to be able to walk straight. Can't afford that this morning. Syd has a buyer coming to look at the marina and he wants to make sure there isn't a single splinter out of place."

Startled and feeling like he'd come into the middle of a story that was missing some vital facts he asked, "What? Buyer?"

"Don't sweat it. Any deal is likely to take weeks if not months and by then I'll have things figured out."

"What things?" he tried to ask as she pushed him out the door, her own arms full of her lunch and the cooler she kept cold water in so she didn't have to spend two bucks every time she got thirsty while she worked.

"Don't worry about it I said. I've got it under control. I gotta go Frank or I'm gonna be late. You know what the traffic is like down near the waterfront."

"Vee …" he growled.

"Focus on what you have to do and stay safe," she told him. She looked around surreptitiously and then planted a quick kiss on his lips.

"Uh uh," he said right before nearly stealing her breath with a much more public display of affection than she was expecting.

"Uh …."

"Now I can go to work," he said as he got in his car and backed out watching her as she looked at him in near outrage.

"You are such a guy!" He just grinned at her and pointed at the coupe waiting for her to get going as well.

"I swear, one of these days," she muttered before snapping her seatbelt on.


	29. Chapter 29

Chapter 29

Frank was correct, the day sucked badly. But then again Vee was correct as well; it didn't suck as much as it could have because in many ways Vee was never far away from Frank and that bled off the emotions that wanted to swamp him … the breakfast sandwich she had fixed him made the ridiculous Miami rush hour traffic more bearable, the travel mug of coffee that came with it that was way better than the turpentine he normally drank at the precinct, the comfort food lunch that filled the corners both physically and emotionally, and the occasional daydream of long legs in a French maid costume.

But the day did absolutely suck, there was no hiding from that fact. IAB making the rounds and generally getting under foot and making people nervous. A new prosecutor that was way too timid that cost not one but three arrests. Two cases that blew up when important witnesses refused to testify. An accident in the lab that destroyed a piece of key evidence … not the day crew's fault thank god. A subpoena that wasn't granted in time. The list went on and on. And then there was everyone's personal shit that seemed to bleed over everything.

As soon as he walked in he got attitude from Boa Vista. Her snarky comment alluding to Vee's age made him want to call her a bitch. It also made him wonder if she needed to get laid. It was the only explanation he could come up with for being so damn interested in his own love life. Love. Where the hell did that come from? That thought had him walking away while she'd still been in the middle of talking to him.

Frank had vaguely heard Ryan snap that if he didn't have a problem with his cousin spending time with Frank then no one else needed to get involved. Nat then made the mistake of saying something to the effect that Ryan didn't have the greatest track record … with women or otherwise … so maybe he just wasn't seeing the problem. Ryan then said he'd certainly made a mistake with her. Frank was actually impressed that Ryan was standing up for himself with a woman. Maybe that mess with Samantha Owens had actually done something for him after all.

While Frank was eating his lunch he'd spotted Ryan and Walter with their heads together. From their body language alone it looked like they were commiserating with each other and if he had to guess it was going to be about women. Walter had bonded with Jesse Cardoza when he'd first come on day shift, after his death he seemed to drift a bit but hopefully if he and Ryan could team up both men would benefit.

Speaking of teaming up, Frank was just about sick of the are-they-or-aren't-they thing that was going on between Eric and Calleigh. He knew office politics made any relationship between them challenging at best but damn they needed to move it along a little faster and stop giving the gossips reason to yack and IAB to get pissy. He hoped to hell he had more sense than to leave his emotions on his face the way Eric did every time he looked at Calleigh. All he needed was for someone to start making comments like he looked like he'd been hit in the face with a dead fish.

And talking about someone that needed to get laid. Not for the sexual release but for some human contact. Frank knew he needed to find some time to figure out what was going on with Horatio. The man needed to talk … and talk to someone that would listen and understand without condemning him for not being able to move on. Hell, Horatio had given him that during and after his divorce with Melissa. Vee called that stuff reciprocity. Well Horatio needed some reciprocity with no strings attached.

But the worst of the day was the medical confirmation that Melissa … damn. Just damn, damn, damn damn. Why wouldn't the woman just listen to him? Holy hell, why couldn't she see what she was doing to others and herself? Now look at this mess.

The diagnosis of Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome was confirmed. They'd put Melissa on high dose shots of Thiamine hydrochloride for three to five days depending on if there was any improvement. But that was the thing, there was no guarantee of improvement. She'd gone beyond something that fancy doc at called the encephalopathy of the Wernicke symptoms to the cognitive deficits of Korsakoff part of the syndrome. There was also no guarantee that symptoms could be reversed at all. At best, they hoped to mitigate some of the symptoms but she was never going to be completely free of what she'd done to herself.

Long term prognosis wasn't good. The doctors had already told Dan and Melissa's father that they should probably start setting up a conservatorship for her. She wasn't going to be able to live on her own because she refused to abstain from Alcohol and her diet would need to be constantly monitored to make sure she was getting the nutrition she needed. Coral had volunteered to take care of her sister but the doctors had all nixed that idea immediately putting Coral's nose more than a little out of joint … and frankly shocking her that they didn't believe she was capable of being as objective as was needed. Frank was staying out of it as far as they would allow him to. They kept asking for his input and he was damned if he did and then damned if he didn't … refusing to say anything made him look like he didn't care; putting his two cents in pulled him too far in and he felt like he was being strangled.

Coral wanted the kids to come see Melissa thinking it would do her some good and help her focus. The social worker had said that was actually the opposite of what Melissa … and the kids … needed. Thank god he didn't have to be the one to say it. When the doctors said that Melissa would only remain in the hospital to get her physically stable and that she was going to be moved to a residential ward at a mental health facility Coral really came uncorked … at least until Dan and Melissa's criminal attorney told her that if she couldn't contribute constructively that perhaps she should leave the meeting.

Then Coral had turned on Frank but the criminal attorney shut that down fast by saying that Coral couldn't have it both ways; that Melissa was either in control of her actions or she couldn't control herself, that she couldn't pick and choose which one it was dependent on what best suited Coral's argument. They also needed to deal with where Melissa's alcoholism had brought her today. The lawyer had managed a temporary arrangement with the prosecutor but it all depended on Melissa's diagnosis and personal commitment to treatment.

Then came the financial issues of the situation. Treatment was not going to be cheap. Since Melissa wasn't a first-time offender she didn't qualify for any of the state-funded programs. By rights she should have already been remanded to state custody, hell she hadn't even been arraigned yet. But the medical and mental aspects of the case made that impossible. The hospital was trying to arrange a place for Melissa at the South Florida Evaluation and Treatment Center. While there the Prosecutor had told Melissa's defense attorney that he would arrange with a judge for that to be part of her incarceration. Coral tried to tune up again and ask who thought her sister needed to be incarcerated and Melissa's criminal attorney said that unless she wanted her sister to be remanded to state custody for the duration until she was fit to stand trial that he suggested she not make a fuss and mess up the plea agreement he was trying to build.

Back and forth it went until Melissa's father was the one that told Coral to leave the room, that she wasn't helping and was actually hurting Melissa's chances. Coral got bent out of shape and said if she couldn't stay then Frank really had no right to stay either. There was going to be a row then Frank stood up and said, "Coral's right. You don't need me to be here and don't need me to sign off on any decisions you make for Melissa. Dan has Melissa's power of attorney. When it comes to the kids, yeah, I will be participating, but Melissa decided a long time ago while she was still in her right mind that she was done with me."

The men seemed to understand and Frank tried to leave without a bunch of noise but Coral followed him down the hall snarling and snapping at him. Finally he'd had enough.

"Dammit Coral, if you think this is what I ever wanted for Melissa and the kids you are as out of your mind as your sister."

"How dare you …"

"I'm daring because I'm not being left any choice. Melissa hasn't left me any choice. Hell, she hasn't left any of us any choice. No one forced Melissa to drink. And she knew right from wrong so you can't use that excuse either. She could stop drinking … hell, she did it multiple times. But she would always choose to start right back up. She knew the possibilities. She knew what could happen. She made the choice to drink anyway. And now … aw damn …"

Frank still wasn't one hundred percent recovered and he was starting to get shaky. He wound up being forced to sit down even if it made him look weak.

"Coral, whether you want to hear it or admit it … Melissa did this to herself and now she's doing this to us. I'm mostly pissed about what she's done and is doing to the kids but if you think seeing her like this is easy for me I can assure you it isn't. But I can't undo what Melissa chose to do."

"You're taking the kids away from her."

Frank sighed. "I'm doing what my moral and legal duty is. I'm their father, it is my responsibility. I thought leaving them with Melissa was the right thing to do. I was wrong, and damn that hurts to understand how wrong that was. The girls could be dead Coral … dead at their mother's hands. That still scares my spit completely dry. And I've learned a few things. Lucky for the kids your parents stepped in a lot more than I was aware of it happening. Your dad admitted yesterday that they were keeping stuff from me, afraid that I'd … I'd take the kids away from Melissa which meant taking them away from your parents."

"You would have," she accused.

"You don't know that. Hell, I don't know that. I was never given the chance. Just like Melissa continues to insist that I was unfaithful to her you keep insisting that I would have taken the kids. I'll be honest and say that maybe that would have been what happened in the end but I would never stop your parents from being in the kids' lives. I still don't want that to happen. The kids need the stability that your parents can offer. Right now I just can't provide them with both financial security and with all the time they need. Since the law says that I am the financial provider I'm hoping your parents remain able to provide them with the other."

Coral complained, "But not if Melissa is in their home."

"Not only no but hell no. Your parents can't take care of the kids and Melissa at the same time."

"You're making them choose. Their daughter or their grandchildren. Do you know how unfair that is?!"

"Of course I know it is unfair woman. Just as unfair as the choice that Melissa has forced on the rest of us. But that's the way it is. Melissa set this situation up, not me, not you, not your parents, not the kids … but we are all going to have to make those unfair decisions. I have to make them for the kids' sakes."

"But …"

"Coral, three years."

"What?"

"Three years. Your parents only have three years left with the kids before they are off to college and their adult lives. It may take that long for Melissa to be physically and mentally strong enough to move home with your parents. You've heard the doctors same as the rest of us have … it is going to take her a year at a minimum to recover just from the physical aspects of the accident. Her foot and ankle were completely shattered. In her leg, the tibia was broken in two places and the fibular in four. Her knee is all crapped out and it's possible that by the time she relearns to walk unaided she may need hip surgery … and that's assuming that she can walk unaided. Then there is the brain bruise … that may have lasting effects, they can't tell yet. And that's all before the physical effects of the Wet Brain diagnosis. She has ataxia, she stumbles, she's having trouble communicating, cognitively … aw hell, you've heard it, you don't need me to repeat it. It's ripping the hell out of all of us to see how bad off she is and how long …"

Coral finally stopped focusing on her own pain long enough to see and realize that Frank really was devastated by what had happened.

He continued, "Melissa will never be capable of living on her own. Do you understand what that means Coral? Do you? Even if she could go home with your parents today, your parents aren't spring chickens. They're in their sixties. The stress of this situation is already aging them. You can't ask them to take on Melissa and her needs on top of … not even instead of … the kids. And no, you can't take on either one either. You've got your own kids that need you. Hank is in middle school and Julie will be a senior next year same as Frankie. Dan's life is at least as challenging. We can't give Melissa what she needs … she's made it impossible for us to give her what she needs."

That's when Coral finally broke down. Frank felt awkward as hell but he let his ex-sister in law cry on his shoulder and even called her boyfriend to tell him that he was needed. An hour later Frank was finally able to leave, relieved to be away, but he'd also come to the conclusion he had some soul-searching of his own to do.


	30. Chapter 30

Chapter 30

The red-headed man caught her right as she was leaving. "Calleigh, a moment of your time."

Calleigh had been looking forward to getting home and seeing her kids … it still amazed her to be able to say her kids … but Horatio was the boss and his tone left her in no doubt he wanted to talk about the team.

"Sure," she told him forcing herself to smile.

"Let's go in my office."

As soon as they were both seated Horatio got right to it. "I'm sensing we have some issues in the team."

After a brief pause to prepare for the coming discussion she admitting, "We do."

"The issues aren't work related."

"No. I don't believe so. Work is getting done. Everyone is still being professional. We are successfully pursuing assigned cases."

"But …"

"But … there are some tensions."

Horatio pursed his lips. "Yes. Tensions." He was silent for another few moments. "I don't want to have to make an issue of this when it might exacerbate everyone's stress levels but the reality is that this has the potential to adversely impact lab performance and it is my job to make sure that doesn't happen."

"Divide and conquer?" Calleigh suggested meaning she'd talk to some of the team and Horatio would talk to the others.

"Yes. We'll give that a try. You speak with Natalia and Walter and I'll speak with Eric and Ryan."

"Who should speak to Frank?"

Sardonically Horatio answered, "I believe Frank … and you … were trying to formulate a plan to speak to me."

Calleigh just blinked, embarrassed to be caught red-handed as it were.

Smiling sadly he added, "While you are having your discussions, please impress on Miss Boa Vista and Walter that they do not want me getting involved in their love lives."

Calleigh rolled her eyes and struggled and failed to hide a grin. "Oh my lord, is there nothing you don't know?"

"A great deal," Horatio admitted. "However, we each have our job to do. And I'm going to say something and I hope neither you nor Eric take it as a condemnation of what the two of you are doing." Calleigh braced herself. "I believe we need to encourage our team members to … er … find another pond to fish in. Things are becoming a bit incestuous."

Calleigh put her hand over her mouth to hold back a surprised … and somewhat appalled … laugh. "Um … do you …"

"Have a problem with you and Eric? No. Not at all. However, eventually the two of you are going to need to make some decisions and they aren't going to be easy ones for either of you."

"No they're not," she agreed. "And I suppose our example has only made it easier for others to think that dating your co-worker is okay."

"Perhaps, but we must all bear our own responsibility … and culpability … about such choices." Then he became more stern. "I do not wish for the relationship between Miss Boa Vista and Mr. Wolfe to be … encouraged. It was tried once and wound up creating problems. Mr. Wolfe is not … hmmm … he is not proof against … hmmm …"

Rescuing her boss she said, "Ryan tends to attract dominant women. Or is attracted to them. I'm not even sure he knows which."

Horatio cleared his throat, slightly embarrassed. "Just so. However, whichever it is, it hasn't worked out for him very well. He needs to try something different … or stop trying anything for a while until he knows what it is he wants. I would simply like to see him … hmmm …"

"Swimming in a different pond for a change? Our career field does tend to attract women of stronger will and personality. If that is what he wants then fine … but there's other places to go out and find that. But I'll leave explaining that up to you. I'll find out what is up with Walter." She sighed. "And I'll try and find out what has Natalia and Ryan sniping at each other." She stopped for a moment then asked quickly, "Are you sure you don't have a problem with Eric and I?"

"I don't want to see either of you hurt. I'm more than willing to give you two a chance to work things out. I'd like to see you remain friends if … if things don't work out romantically. However, if you eventually do work things out …"

"Decision making time."

"Yes."

Calleigh nodded and with the meeting with Horatio at an end she left knowing that not only did she need to have a discussion with some of her team members, she and Eric needed to start having some serious discussions even though it was likely to create some stress neither of them wanted. Not only was it a matter of the lab, more importantly she had Patty and Austin to think about now.

# # # # # # # # # #

"I'm not in the mood to argue Natalia," Ryan told the woman in front of him.

"It was simply an observation, you're the one that is turning it into an argument."

"Fine. Whatever," Ryan said while trying to find some patience. "But I am not interested in either one of them. One of them I never was and Lily pretty much cut me off at the knees before the banquet so enough with rubbing the salt into my wounds."

"So you admit you had feelings for Lily."

Losing the few patience he'd found Ryan snapped, "Geez, enough already. Lily made it pretty damn clear that all she wanted was some arm candy. Maybe that would have been satisfying back when I was in college but I'm looking for a little more than that in a woman these days."

"Excuse me?! Arm candy?! Think a lot of yourself do you?"

"Look, you're the only woman that never treated me … just never mind. I'm not some damn gigolo." Ryan stomped out of the locker room and ran to catch up with Walter.

Natalia was furious and she didn't know why. She was throwing things into her go-home bag when it hit her. "You're the only woman that never treated me …" What had Ryan meant to say? She was the only woman that never treated him what? And a gigolo? Seriously?" Then Natalia simply deflated and sat on the bench that ran down between the two sets of lockers.

Calleigh walked into the locker room, saw the look on Natalia's face, and asked, "You okay?"

"I'm an idiot."

"Excuse me?"

"I'm an idiot." She sighed. "And I hurt Ryan's feelings."

"Well … yeah, you did."

Natalia looked at Calleigh, was prepared to be defensive and then saw she didn't have her I'm-your-friend face on, she was wearing her I'm-your-supervisor face.

"Natalia, this has to stop. Since you and Ryan can't seem to stop it you are leaving me and Horatio …"

"Horatio?"

"What did you expect? He's our team leader … for god's sake he is in charge of the entire lab. Just because he rarely intervenes doesn't mean he isn't aware of what is going on. So yes … Horatio and I have to now stick our nose where we would really rather not because of the potential problems this could cause the lab. And this time it could be you in the hot seat and not Ryan … or is that what you are going for? You want Ryan to be removed from the lab?"

"No. Of course not. He's just …"

"What? What is he just? Not the puppy he used to be? Getting tired of being chased around the precinct by women that ought to know better?"

"Calleigh!"

"What else do you think people are going to think? That woman in the DA's office will make sure of it; she's already shooting her mouth off. Lily Coronado will make sure of it as well, and if you can't see that then you have some serious re-examining to do. Neither one of them are happy that Ryan won't play their game. Here's another thing I want you to think about … he is your younger co-worker. It would be very easy for someone to be vindictive and come after you for harassment."

Startled at the very idea Natalia said, "Ryan would never …"

"No he wouldn't … for which you are extremely lucky. But someone else very well could … including IAB if they get wind of it. I can tell you from experience that it is brutal being on the receiving end of that kind of attention."

"You? Uh … and Eric?"

"Yes. I am Eric's supervisor. I am older by seven years and hold a great deal of authority over him professionally. I realize, regardless of how circumspect we are, it is an open secret that Eric and I are … testing the waters. We want it to work out between us. But we also have a lot of rules and boundaries that we must deal with … professionally, legally, and as friends. And yes, there was an anonymous complaint to IAB – and this was after Stetler was arrested and they won't say who it was – and yes there is still an open investigation into whether or not I am unduly influencing or controlling Eric."

"Oh my God, you never said anything."

"What's there to say? Eric and I know the risks. Horatio is aware of the situation. The less the rest of the team becomes involved the better for everyone else, especially for the lab as a whole. Plausible deniability. Eric and I know we can maintain our professionalism but that doesn't mean that the situation doesn't impact the lab no matter how we wish it otherwise."

"I didn't know."

"It isn't your responsibility to know. What is your responsibility is to fix whatever is going on between you and Ryan. I don't think it is anything romantic."

"Of course not! That didn't work the first time around."

"Exactly. And if you're friends then stay friends. Just friends. It looks like Ryan would accept that. Why can't you?"

"Wait … no, that's not … that's … oh my god. Is that what you think?" she asked slowly. "It is isn't it."

"I don't know what to think at the moment, you are however acting out of character. Whatever it is, and I'm not going to get into your business, but whatever it is Natalia you need to leave Ryan alone until you get a handle on it. God help him, he's sensitive. Sensitive guys …" Calleigh shook her head. "You know what I'm trying to say."

"Yes," Natalia admitted, feeling properly chastised. And resentful at the same time that she felt that way.


	31. Chapter 31

Chapter 31

"You sure it isn't a problem?"

"Ra-Ra …"

"Okay, okay," Ryan said, finally finding a small grin. "I just … I just didn't want to be in the way."

Vee sighed. It had been a long freaking day. "Ryan if that's your way of asking if Frank is coming over the answer is no. We both have some thinking to do and after two weeks of practically living with each other, we both think it is best to … get a little space between us." At least that is the way that Frank had explained it to her in a text. A text. Geez.

"Is there are problem?" he asked. Vee heard the protective tone entering his voice but continued throwing together a quick dinner of baked chicken and rice pilaf that she'd started after receiving his call while he was on his way over.

"Not the kind you're imagining."

Ryan said, "Oh Really. Then what kind is it?"

Trying to deflect what was beginning to feel like an interrogation Vee said, "I thought we were supposed to be talking about you."

"We will. Just humor me by explaining so when I do get around to my problems I don't get distracted."

Vee cocked an eyebrow at her cousin and said, "That reverse psychology crap stopped working on me when I was fourteen. I think I deserve a little more respect now that I'm twenty-five."

Ryan rolled his eyes. "Yeah, you're ancient all right. Seriously Pug, just spit it out. Right or wrong, this is how I am."

"I know," she told him affectionately. She just barely managed not to sigh again before she started explaining. "Frank's personal life is a mess … not because he did something to cause it but that doesn't change the fact that he has a lot on his plate. Maybe calling it a mess isn't even right … maybe I should just say it is chaotic. You add me into the mix … Frank won't say it but I know he's got some personal hang ups he is dealing with. I've got my own hang ups as well. And my own personal life isn't exactly smooth sailing."

Ryan nodded thoughtfully after giving it due consideration. "Yeah, chaotic is probably a better word. He still looks like he is handling it okay, at least from what I've seen."

"He is but he is getting frustrated."

"I can understand that," Ryan said. "I know about Frank's kids and the ex-wife issues. I'm not sure I want to know about Frank's personal hang ups … at least not in relation to you being one of them."

"That pretty much covers it though … Oh Ryan I feel so bad for Frank. He really did love Melissa. Maybe he still does, at least on some level. This whole thing …" Vee winced before explaining, "The brain damage is permanent. To what degree they can't say yet but, she's never going to be able to operate independently again."

"Oh crap," Ryan said shocked. Then worried he asked, "He's not taking that on is he?"

"No. At least I don't think he is. He does have to be somewhat involved because of how it affects his kids. It is just a lot for him to take in and deal with but he has no choice."

"Okay. That's rough but it sounds like he is dealing with it."

"Like I said, just adding me to the mix is complicating things. He feels bad ... I think he feels like he is stringing me along even though I explained to him I don't have any problem with it being that way."

Trying to understand Ryan asked, "He feels guilty for having to move slow?"

"Yeah, pretty much. Or at least I think that's what he means. He gets frustrated like he is doing something wrong, feels bad about it, then feels better after I convince him I'm fine … then he goes right back to feeling bad … or guilty … because things have to be the way they are right now. I'm just not understanding how to fix this."

Ryan took the plates from her so she could fill their glasses with tea. "There's nothing you can do."

"What? I thought you'd be on my side."

"I am on your side Pug, but you have to understand this is a guy thing. And it is a Frank thing. I've known him a few years now. What you have to understand is … well … Frank is … hmmm … he is a man of action. He can be patient as hell when it gets him something but he prefers action. The fact that … oh my god I'm saying this about my baby cousin … look, Frank is probably just feeling guilty because he is being forced to do the responsible thing rather than … geez … rather than move on you like his hormones are saying."

"Ryan!"

"Hey, I know, okay … I know. Makes me as uncomfortable as hell too. About like when I had to make sure you'd been given The Talk when you started going with the Jackass."

"I swear Ra-Ra," Vee said nearly as red as Ryan. Then she started laughing. "Oh my gawd, I thought you were going to hyperventilate or something and the Dean of Girls, Sister Mary Catherine, just about fell in love with you when she caught you reading us the riot act that time you found us up in the pecan tree."

"Don't remind me, please … really … don't … I still have nightmares."

The look on his face and his tone of voice did nothing but make her laugh harder and she needed it after the day she'd had. She finally was able to get herself under control when he asked, "Now what about what is going on with you?"

Vee stabbed her chicken like the chicken wasn't what she was stabbing. She said, "Spicoli."

"Why do I know that name? Wait … Mark Spicoli? Your Team Leader?"

"Yeah," Vee said. And it was obvious whatever fond memories she'd had of the man did not make up for whatever was going on now.

"Vee? Do we have a problem?"

"No, we don't. I do."

"Vee …"

"I'm handling it Ra-Ra."

"Explain handling."

"They want me … wanted me … back."

"Who wants you back? Porter? Hell no."

"Actually I'm not sure how much the Porters still play into it. There's been some kind of shake up. Mr. Porter Sr. and his wife were in an accident about a week ago. Something happened to the plane they were in … landing wasn't optimal and everyone got tossed around. It is being kept quiet but it is bad enough that … look, it's bad and Mr. Porter Sr. isn't a young man … he's going on seventy and broken bones at that age are nothing to fool around about. His wife is even worse off. Rob's dad … there's a reason why Mr. Porter Sr. was hoping to skip a generation to hand the business off. Rob and his dad would never have inherited. Jack and John Thomas were the most likely candidates but not even they measured up to his standards. It's one of the reasons why Mr. Porter Sr. trained me himself … I was supposed to provide support to whomever eventually took over. Then there was Celia's husband Gerhard though no one ever gave him serious consideration. Well it looks like Gerhard … I don't know how … but basically Gerhard is backed by the Board and the Porters are out until such a time as Mr. Porter Sr. is capable of taking back the reins."

"Er …"

"Look, Gerhard … geez … he wants to wipe the slate. He sent me a message through Spicoli that apparently the trouble has been coming from Rob's brothers. Spicoli even brought me paperwork that Mr. Porter Sr. had filed absolving me of any and all of the trouble that had been claimed against me."

"Fine, we'll add that to the mix in a minute but what do they mean they want you back."

"Back as in … look …"

"I know. You've never told me everything about your job. I don't want the details. You told me it wasn't illegal. I trust you."

"Thanks Ra-Ra … and none of it was illegal. But it isn't exactly the kind of work you can hire someone off the street to do. And from what I understand, the way my situation was handled cost them some contracts and a couple of valuable employees that … took their skills elsewhere where they felt safer."

"So when they say they want you back …"

"Yeah. The traveling and the whole nine yards. Spicoli made it seem like maybe even more … control or authority or something along those lines … would go with it."

"Vee …"

"I know Ra-Ra. I know. And I explained it to Spicoli … the nightmares, the other stuff. He hadn't heard. In fact he was pretty shocked because none of that had been relayed to him … and I believe him. It looks like the Porters kept things even closer to the vest than even I had thought. He got Gerhard on the line and … and we talked it out. Then I made a few phone calls and confirmed a few things they'd said to me … including the shuffle in the Board Room."

"And …"

"And … Gerhard wants me to sell him my stock in the company so he can secure his position. It would mean gutting my retirement but he'd pay a premium for the stocks and he said he'd buy out some of my other interests that are just sitting around doing nothing right now."

"And …"

"And if I do that … I would be cutting all ties with Porter International, all of its subsidiaries. I'd lose any leverage in any future dealings if for some reason I would have to come back at them … like maybe one of my injuries makes it impossible for me to work. But I would get a personal guarantee from the Board and Gerhard himself that he'd give me a glowing reference. And it looks like I'm going to need it."

Like he was afraid to asked Ryan repeated, "And …"


	32. Chapter 32

Chapter 32

"Syd sold the marina."

Vee noted that Ryan was having the same reaction that Frank had had to that bit of info. "Wait … what? Syd as in Syd Speedwell? Your boss?"

"Yeah. Apparently the yacht club next door got wind that Syd had some buyers lining up and they decided to get to him first and give him his asking price no questions asked. They've been wanting to expand … the owners of the yacht club I mean. It was problematic because the land on the other side of the club is a city greenspace. The city didn't want to give them a variance. The catch for Syd … and therefore the rest of us … is the transfer of ownership has to happen within thirty days rather than three to six months which Syd was original expecting because the club is running out of time on some other permits they've already paid for. Things are going to be moving quick from here on out. Tomorrow all the boat owners are getting notice and they'll be given fifteen days on top of the thirty to decide whether they are going to pay the higher mooring prices or find a new place to dock their boat."

"And your job?"

Vee shrugged as nonchalantly as she could. "Gone. I got my two-weeks-notice plus one-week severance when I came in today."

Ryan just looked at her silently then said, "Give this place up. It's just a month-to-month rental. Move back in with me. It will give you time to figure things out."

Acknowledging her reality Vee responded, "And maybe I would take you up on that Ra-Ra, and may still have to, but I've also got to deal with the Trust coming to an end. According to the legal terms I have no choice but to take the tax hit when the trust dissolves the end of this month … or …"

"Or?"

"Or, the lawyer says there is a loophole that if I plow all of the money into a piece of personal real estate then no tax hit because no capital gains … but that could potentially leave me worse off than if I didn't because I would still have all of the upkeep and monthly expenses of a house but I'm currently sans job."

Ryan was still trying to catch up. "Real estate? You mean buy a house?"

"Yep."

"Well, that … uh … is a good thing … right? Or are you trying to tell me that you planned on moving back to Tampa … or Biloxi?"

Attempting to be honest Vee answered, "I hadn't thought that far ahead but it looks like I'm being forced to. Everything seems to be conspiring to force me to. The thing is, I'm not dead set against making all of these decisions … but …"

"But?"

"There's Frank."

"Oh."

"Yeah 'oh.' But I don't know how to approach him about this. He's under enough stress. I don't know if I should even talk to him about this. If it was just you and me then it would be easy … or sorta anyway. I'd just do what you tell me to do then …"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa Pug. Uh uh. As much as I appreciate what you're saying. As much as … as it makes me feel good to know you trust me that much. This isn't my decision. None of these are my decisions. At least after me convincing you not to go back to work for the Porters. I mean I'm willing to bounce some ideas around but in the end … this is your inheritance and you are way too old for me to be playing guardian these days."

Vee was contemplative for a moment. "I have to be honest with myself Ra-Ra. I'd be a medical liability out in the field … and that's assuming I could handle things and not have the nightmares get out of control."

"You still have them?"

"Yeah. Not as often, and not as waking dreams, but it still happens. And that more than anything tells me I'm unfit … at least for field work and maybe for the rest because just being around Spicoli and all of the other memories was pretty stressful. Spicoli understands. His brother David took early retirement and then disability after having seen so much heartache … he was with a medical team that would follow us around to create goodwill with the locals. We lost a good medic but he was going to blow an artery if he didn't get out. It was the kids that finally got to him."

Momentarily exchanging one worry for another he asked, "Are you still seeing your counselor?"

"On an as-needed basis. He still wants me to check in with the group … and I go to the monthly meetings. There's one coming up in a couple of days. I … I'd been debating whether to go or not but seeing Spicoli, all of it coming back, it was hard. Not as hard as I thought it would be to see one of the old crew but … it wasn't easy either. I kept waiting for him to tell me about the rest of them until I realized he was waiting on me to ask. So I asked."

"And?"

"And … when the answers came I realized I was angry and a little resentful. I feel like they threw me to the side. They could have called to check on me … none of them ever did, not even Spicoli. Fine, I get they didn't know about the PTSD and stuff, but they never even called to see if I made it out of the hospital and to see if I got back on my feet. I always kept up with team members who left … still do … and it is some of them that have been sending encouraging notes and stuff. But my own team never did. It hurt … it still hurts. It makes me wonder about my judgement. Rob … the crew members … Mom's cousins …"

"Frank?"

Vee was silent. "No. Maybe. I don't think so but … but I don't know how to talk to him about this stuff. Is it too soon? Is it not real? Is it right given how much he is going through himself right now? Is it wrong of me to want his input at all? I want to stay here. I … I want to stay with Frank. That means if I'm going to go to the trouble of buying a house I need to make sure that it fits my future plans. I just don't know … is there even a future with Frank to plan for?"

Ryan nodded then asked, "You want me to talk to Frank? Feel him out?"

"A big part of me does," Vee admitted. "A big part of me wants to play it totally safe so I don't have to take the chance in getting hurt. But … I can't use you like that Ra-Ra. You taught me better. And sticking my head in the sand isn't healthy. I gotta fulfill my responsibilities if I'm going to have any self-respect at all."

Ryan relaxed. "Pug … I can say with all honesty that you are one of the best things I've done in my life. When Ronnie made me your guardian in his will it was … it was mostly a joke. We were just filling out some paperwork for a class we were taking. Neither one of us had any idea how life was going to get turned on its head. God I'm glad I didn't screw things up and walk away like a lot of people in our family thought I should."

"Me too." Vee blinked the water from her eyes that had piled up and threatened to spill out. "Now enough about me. You tell me what is going on with you."


	33. Chapter 33

Chapter 33

A little hesitantly Ryan explained to Vee what had happened … and hadn't happened … with Natalia.

Showing his frustration he complained, "I just don't get it. I was a gentleman. She has nothing to complain about. I thought we had a good time. I even told her how much I respect her. Then this morning it was like she'd thought about it and decided I'd committed some crime only she's not letting on what that is. I'm thinking maybe Lily said something."

Vee snorted. "Cuz … Natalia has got an itch that needs scratching. You're just getting caught up in her time of life issues."

Ryan nearly choked on the chicken he'd been swallowing. After he got it down and could draw breath he squeaked, "She's got a what?!"

"An itch. She's what … forty? And single. Kids aren't in her future unless she adopts like your friend Calleigh. She … geez … trust me, she's got an itch. You're a known quantity and … well … be honest, in the past you would have come when she called about that sort of thing. But you've changed and now she's found the card she was holding in reserve won't play."

"Uh … no. Natalia is not like that."

"All women can be like that … men too for that matter. It's the whole biological clock thing. Maybe she doesn't mean to be like that but that doesn't change the fact she's just going through a certain spot on her timeline of life."

"Since when did you get this cynical?" Ryan asked concerned that perhaps Rob has stolen something from her.

But it wasn't that at all as she explained. "I've always known it. You know how Tony's mom can be. She's worse than I am about letting things just fall out of her mouth. Lord, the things she and Momma would sometimes talk about when no guy was around. And add your momma in … and you know her how she can be. When they all got going, men ran for their lives … or do you want me to clue you into some of their discussions?"

"I don't think I want to know," Ryan said in slowly dawning horror.

Vee chuckled. "You'd be right about that so I won't subject you to it. But seriously … I'd place a good-sized bet. Natalia has an itch. You're a known quantity to her. You're 'safe' … what's more she trusts you and you're a nice guy. But you told her that you 'respect' her which is the deathburger for getting all hot and bothered. Maybe she didn't even consciously plan it but you got lucky Cuz. You got away last night … and she's making excuses why you were unsuitable. What a female goober … you're super suitable, you just want more than the superficial she's willing to offer. When she figures that out she'll snap back … or go onto the next poor guy."

Ryan just kept chewing his next bite of food, attempting to figure out how serious he should be taking what Vee said. He kept chewing … except this time on her words … all the way home. No … it couldn't be true … an "itch" … not Natalia. She'd never objectified him, not like other women had. Never used him that way. It couldn't be that. Surely … surely not?

# # # # # # # # # #

Vee was staring at her computer screen about an hour after Ryan left. She was trying to use her writing to work off some of the mental confabulation she was feeling. It wasn't working. She hadn't typed a single word, not even one she needed to backspace over.

Her phone rang and it was almost with relief that she turned to pick it up thinking that it would be Ryan. Instead it was Frank.

"Frank? Is everything okay? I thought you said …"

Frank interrupted her. "I'm an ass. I'm sitting in the damn parking lot staring up at your apartment like some damn teenager."

"You're where?!" Vee said, getting up and rushing to her front window.

Frank waved at her when he saw her there. Then he asked, "Is Ryan around?"

"No. He left an hour ago."

"Can I come up?"

"Of course! You don't even need to ask for Pete's sake."

"Actually I do. 'Cause I'm not here to ravish your body no matter how much I want to. We need to talk."

After a momentary silence Vee said, "That doesn't bode well. But such is life. Come on up. I'll fix some tea … or coffee. Which one do you want?"

"Actually … I brought a bottle of wine. You mind?"

"No," she answered. "Are you okay?"

"I haven't been drinking. But I want to. But not alone. And not the hard stuff. But I still need a drink. You still okay with me coming up?"

Trying to remain calm for his sake she answered, "Frank, I told you I'm there for you. However you need me to be."


	34. Chapter 34

Chapter 34

After Frank came through the door Vee closed it and took the wine and said while looking at the bottle, "I haven't got a clue what to do with this. But if you'll tell me I'll …"

"Just give me a glass and I'll open the bottle," he said quietly. Too quietly. This was a Frank she didn't know. This too quiet and too careful man. He reminded her too much of a man walking through a mine field."

He followed her into the kitchen, took the glass from her hand and then filled it three quarters full. He took a slow and careful sip and Vee noticed his hand was just barely shaking.

"You … wanna watch a show? Wanna sit on the balcony? The sofa?"

"The sofa," he answered in a gravelly whisper.

She turned but Frank pulled her back against him. She smelled the wine on his breath where he breathed against her neck. She didn't care for it but it had more to do that she was getting a little scared … not of Frank but for him.

"Frank?"

He didn't answer for a moment then he said, "This is hard."

Trying to understand she asked, "Which this? The situation with your kids? Work? Um … me?"

Frank finally started moving again. When they got to the sofa Vee tried to give him some room but he pulled her next to him with the arm he'd captured her with while continuing to hold the glass of wine with his other hand and sip from it. Vee just waited.

The glass of wine was almost completely gone before Frank spoke again. "I don't want to be alone. I don't want to be alone anymore."

"You aren't. Unless you're saying that …"

"Don't put words in my mouth Vee. Don't do what she did. Just … just give me a minute."

Vee shut up, unsure and confused what she was supposed to do or say, or not do or not say.

"I don't want to be alone. But …" Frank stopped and cleared his throat. "But I'd rather be alone than go through what I went through with Melissa. I also don't want to be Melissa."

"Huh?"

"She's left her family in a fix. She's left our kids in a fix. It's a mess that will never go away. We're divorced but she's still managed to leave me in a fix just like the rest of them. I'm never going to be totally free of her. And I don't want to make the mistakes she has. I don't give a damn how that makes me sound." He paused and then said, "I need to explain a few things to you."

"Okay."

"As part of the divorce decree Melissa got the kids, her car, the house and most of the furnishings, the damn cat, and she got half of my retirement. That's the way that shit works. I busted my ass and she took most of it. The only two things I really got to keep was my boat and my sanity, and I came close to losing both of those. At the time … at the time I thought I could rebuild, but it hasn't happened. The economy has been a bitch and things just haven't moved the way I expected them to. It shouldn't have been this hard. The only other thing besides child support that I had to pay, that and keeping the kids on my health insurance, was that I had to maintain a life insurance policy on Melissa until Shelly turns eighteen. We already had a joint one that I'd gotten through my work benefits and the judge accepted it as covering that provision of the decree. I should have gotten her a separate one but the divorce was expensive and no one considered the potential for it turning into a problem. It is a damn good policy, they don't even offer it anymore. One of the provisions is … is long term disability care. It's the only thing that is going to get the treatment that Melissa needs … the long term treatment." Frank paused, gathering his thoughts. "It will probably reach the policy limits because her treatment is going to be expensive. That means that … that I … essentially I … I'm going to be up shit creek if anything happens to me and there will be nothing left over when I die. At best if something happens I can hope to qualify for disability and early retirement but not much more than that." He sighed. "On top of that I've also got three kids to help get through college. I've got pre-paid college plans for them from the state of Florida but that only works if they go to a Florida university. Frankie wants to go to …"

"To Texas."

"Yeah. My parents have a … an in-law suite; my grandmother used to live there. They've said he can live in the suite while he goes to school so long as he helps them out when they need it and his grades stay good and he doesn't screw around. You think I'm hard … my ol' man is twice as bad even with some age on him. There will be no screwing around as far as he is concerned. He's not unreasonable just … anyway, so some of Frankie's living expenses would be covered but tuition is still going to be a bitch and I don't want him leaving school buried in debt. He wants a degree in Sports Medicine. I want to help him have a chance to get it."

"Of course you do," Vee said. "You're his father."

"The girls both want to go to school here in-state but that could change in a heartbeat. They've got options but even if they do stay in-state where tuition and books will be covered they'll have other expenses. And in the not too distant future all three of them are going to be in college at the same time making things even more challenging. And I'm not getting any younger and I've got a job that … that sometimes you don't come home from. It means I don't have a whole lot to offer as far as financial security beyond a weekly paycheck … my retirement, I might be able to rebuild it, I might not … and maybe I won't get the chance. You understand what I'm telling you?"

Giving it the serious consideration his question deserved Vee finally answered, "Yeah. You're a responsible man … a responsible father … you're realistic and worried but willing to work on the problems you're facing."

After a moment … and another few sips from another glass of wine Frank let his head fall back, "Oh girl, I have got to get me some of those crazy glasses you're wearing. How in the hell do you see that out of what I just told you?"

Vee shrugged. "I know you. I know we aren't promised tomorrow so we make the best of what we're given today. I know there are possibilities and responsibilities. And I know anything worth having is worth working for. And I know I need to talk to you about stuff that happened today but I don't know how and I don't know if it is going to make things between us better or worse."

Frank sighed feeling the next on-coming crisis get closer. "Better start at the beginning."

# # # # # # # # # #

Frank was still absorbing the fact that maybe he wouldn't have to worry about leaving her high and dry after all. He wasn't ready to discuss that aspect with Vee yet but it was definitely running through his head.

Unaware that she'd said even more than she thought she had Vee told Frank, "And there you have it. Basically Ryan said he can't make the decisions for me. He trusts me to be smart. I want to make the decisions but not without your input because … because … because I see a future but it's one we haven't talked about and one that I don't even know ... if you …"

There was a huge backfire out in the parking lot and Vee jumped. And just like that she was fighting to wrestled the control of her mind back from the memories of the explosion. She could hear it and smell it … even taste the acrid smoke on the back of her throat and feel the heat against her skin, the shrapnel that had torn her back all to pieces.

She won the battle but it came at a cost … or so she thought. Frank had never seen her like this. He'd gotten some wine into her to try and relax her when she had tensed up so much and started to shake but it didn't stop the shame that Vee felt. She hadn't done this in months. She got up off the sofa; wanted to run. Frank had other ideas. He pulled her into his arms and then sat them both back down on the sofa. "That was a bad one," he muttered while he wiped the cold sweat off of her face.

"Yeah. I can't ask you to … not on top of all … never mind just never …"

Frank turned her face to his and kissed her. "Was it the muffler backfiring? Seeing your old whatever they hell he was … that Spicoli guy? Or is being with me stressing you out?"

Vee looked at him. "The muffler set me off but I've heard backfire before without this happening. It was probably Spicoli and revisiting all that crap."

Hesitantly Frank asked, hoping she'd answer the way he wanted, "Do you want to go back to work in the field?"

"Sometimes I think I do but it was more about the team environment. I realized today that I must have not been that important to any of them if they could forget about me the way they did. So … no … if I'm being realistic I'll never work as a contractor again. I'm too much of a liability … and I don't know if I could trust another team as much as you need to be able to in those types of places."

With relief he struggled not to show he asked her, "What about the marina? You upset about it closing?"

"Yeah … but I suppose being told I was no longer needed was inevitable. I was low man on the totem pole and Syd's wife let slip that they needed to cut staff. I think she was trying to prepare me." Then she finally said, "And then there is the Trust. I only have until the end of the month to do what I need to do or taxes will eat up most of it. And there still might be some tax issues if I sell my stock … and I'm leaning that direction because … because I want to stay here and that money will make that possible. I also want to stay with you. But … Frank? Am I imagining things? Tell me I'm not. Tell me … tell me I have a chance. I don't want to be alone either but … it has to be with someone that I trust. There has to be a chance at … at reciprocity. Ryan and Tony don't count. I know that sounds awful but for this they don't."

"And you trust me?" Frank asked, hating himself for needing to hear it so often.

"Right from the beginning. I know you can't believe me but there was just something … you're … you're solid, like an anchor in a storm, and Ryan trusts you and not just because it's a work thing and he has to. But here's the thing, I'm not … I'm not classy … not like Melissa was, not like you're used to."

"What?" Frank asked, the comment coming completely out of left field.

"Classy. I was at your Condo, remember? You play at being a Texas cowboy and in part you are … but that's not all you are. I … I'm not that Frank. I've been told I clean up half-way decent but, it takes a whole lot of scrubbing and I still usually wind up with mud on my clothes before the night is out."

"Sweetheart, don't make more of that than there is. Most of that stuff came from before the divorce … when I still had the money to live that kind of life. Sure, I try and show the kids a good time when we're together but that doesn't happen as often as I'd like it to. And will happen even less now … I've got a car payment and keeping up with the boat expenses … the boat may have to go."

"No."

"What?" Frank asked, surprised at Vee's sharp tone.

"I said no. You're not giving up your boat. I know how much it means to you. We'll buy a house that has it's own dock. And I'm a freaking mechanic for pete's sake," she slurred. "We don't need no stinking mechanic bills … boat or car."

"Vee? Sweetheart?"

"Huh?"

Frank realized that the wine he'd given to Vee had gone straight to her head. She'd warned him that she reacted funny to alcohol on occasion.

"You need some coffee," he told her.

"No," she said with a definite pout. "We need to work on this. I need to know if you want me to stay or … or if … or if … of if …" She couldn't finish the sentence. It was like her brain was having hiccups.

"You're mine," he whispered into her wine drenched mouth struggling not to give into the chuckle that threatened to fall out. Damn she was a cute little thing when she was tipsy.

"I'm yours," she agreed, kissing him enthusiastically right back, more than willing to be distracted.

"No more being alone."

"For either of us," she agreed.

"We do however have decisions to make woman."

"After we swing from the trees?" she begged hopefully.

Frank's mood slowly finished brightening and then he grinned. "Hell yes."


	35. Chapter 35

Chapter 35

It was six in the morning when Ryan's phone rang. He'd just come out of the shower and putting the drops in his eyes that would probably be a habit he'd have to have for life.

Squinting at the phone to see who it was he finally answered, "Frank?"

"Yeah. You got time to meet for coffee before work?"

"Uh … sure. Sure … yeah. The Diner across from the precinct?"

"Uh … how about just grabbing a cup near the pier?"

"O … kay. Is everything …?"

"Everything is fine." Frank cleared his throat. "Or I hope you think everything is fine. I'll meet you at O'Dool's."

Ryan looked at his phone and started grinning. God he hoped this was what he thought it was. It would make up for all of the craptastic stuff that had been going on.

# # # # # # # # # #

"Dammit Wolfe, stop grinning like that."

Ryan laughed and then laughed some more.

"Look you dust monkey …" but it was more embarrassment than anger that was driving Frank. Part of him felt like a fool. Part of him was relieved to have the worst over. But dammit, it would help if Ryan would stop laughing.

"Oh man," Ryan said finally catching his breath. "Seriously Frank, this is great. I really mean that. I called Tony on the way over and he said if I screwed this up he'd bury me. Tell me I can at least tell him I didn't screw it up."

Frank finally grinned, mostly in relief. "Naw, you did good. You could have had me by the short hairs. But you know … for a while yet …"

"It's all right Frank. I get it. Until you talk things out with your kids and deal with Melissa …"

"Yeah. Then there is my family … Vee might change her mind."

"So for the record … what are we talking about here? I know Vee will take you anyway she can have you but …"

"I mean for it to be marriage. But I want her to make sure she …" The smile left Frank's face. "She says the age difference doesn't matter but I need to be sure she understands. Hell, I suppose I need to consider what it means too."

"Frank, just one thing … and … and you can tell me to shut up. But … do you want kids? I mean kids with Vee."

A little uncomfortably since he honestly wasn't sure he answered, "She told me about the trouble her mother had and how it runs on that side of the family."

"And?"

"I'm not the Jackass. I'm willing to let nature take its course … but not at the risk to her health. That enough of an answer for now?"

And Ryan knew he'd have to be satisfied with that. "Yeah. And for the record … I trust you with Vee … all of it … or you'd never have gotten close to her."

Frank knew that Ryan could make trouble for him; could have made trouble for him from the beginning. But he hadn't and he knew that meant something. He stuck out his hand and the two men shook on it.

Ryan started grinning again, "Guess I better start saving up."

"Huh?"

"Father of the Bride pays the tab."

"We're thinking about eloping to Vegas."

"Oh no you don't," Ryan said laughing. "I want Vee to have … to have it all."

"You kidding?" Frank asked. "Between the two of us she already does."

Had Vee been there she would have said, "Absolutely."

End of Part 1. Part 2 Continued in the next installment entitle "Every Mile A Memory."


End file.
